


Untouchable

by lpfan503



Category: Linkin Park
Genre: Alternate Universe - Middle School, Alternate Universe - No Band, Alternate Universe - Teachers, M/M, Teaching, Twins, bennoda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-21
Updated: 2019-06-30
Packaged: 2019-10-13 19:01:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 76,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17493485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lpfan503/pseuds/lpfan503
Summary: All Mike Shinoda has going on in his life is a stable career. He's been the band director at McArthur Middle School for ten years, and he loves his job - even when he's got some crazy kids in his class. This year a set of twins in causing him some problems, so he solves the issue the way he always does - by calling home to talk to the parents. He isn't prepared for the father of these twins to walk into his life and shake things up. He can't risk his job to date the parent of a student... can he? Bennoda. A/U. Rated for future content.





	1. The Bennington Twins

**Author's Note:**

> This is a little something I’m going to play with before I start Forever. I hope you don’t mind. I just needed a bit of a break after all the heavy writing in both Secrets and Devil’s Drop. Let me know if you find this interesting at all!

Mike Shinoda glanced down at the Apple watch on his wrist, checking the time as he chugged back the remaining half mug of cold coffee on his desk. _The fucking bells are late again. How hard is it to set the damn computer to ring the bells on time?_ He heard his assistant fussing at the kids lined up outside the office door as they waited for the class change, and he looked up from his disastrous desk in time to see Rob squeeze his way around backpacks and instrument cases to come into the office.

“Wait! Mr. Bourdon! My mom told me to give you this!” A seventh grade trumpet player thrust his hand across the threshold to the office and waved a piece of paper around.

“Zac, you know this is late. Mr. Shinoda doesn’t take late paperwork,” Rob said, looking over the late solo contest entry form and receipt.

Mike sighed as he stood up from his unbalanced desk chair and crossed the three small steps from his desk to the office door. “Zachary,” he said sternly, “where was this paperwork when we asked for it every day last week?”

Zac froze, looking up at his band directors. He knew that Mr. Shinoda, the head director, was particularly strict about paperwork, assignments, and money being turned in on time. His shaggy blonde hair was almost covering his green eyes as he tried his best apologetic look. “It was in my backpack?” he said timidly.

“That look might work on your mom, but not on me,” Mike said as he snatched the paperwork out of Rob’s hand to look at it. “Seriously. I just got done with all this paperwork. Like, just now.” He sighed in exasperation. “I guess I’ll take it, since your parents paid the fees on time. You know, in the real world, this is how your electricity gets turned off. By paying your bills late.” Mike stared down at the fourth band kid as he shifted uncomfortably on his feet. The bell rang and Mike waved his hand in the air. “Go to class. I’m not writing you a pass.” 

“Bye, Mr. Bourdon!” Zac chirped before he looked at Mike. “Bye, Mr. Shinoda,” he said somberly, turning away from the door with his backpack - covered in pepperonis on a background of melted cheese - halfway unzipped.

“Zip up your bag, Zac!” Rob yelled as he closed the office door behind their student. “You’re such a hard ass,” he said, a brief smile crossing his face. He pushed his square, wire rimmed glasses up his nose and dropped down into his office chair. “Fuck. They wore me out. You’ve got it so easy,” Rob complained for at least the hundredth time this semester. His longer brown hair was falling into his eyes, and he reached to tuck it behind his ear. 

“You need to get a haircut before Mr. Hahn comes down here and tells you to do it. And I’m not a hard ass. They have to learn to meet deadlines,” Mike responded, adding the late paperwork to the pile on his desk. He looked down, then shifted it to a different pile. There were three piles of paperwork on his desk, none of which were completed, and all of which couldn’t get mixed up or he’d lose his mind. “And I did my time teaching non-varsity bands. When you get your head director gig, you can pass off the babies to your assistant, too.” 

He shoved a hand through his black hair as he glanced out the office windows, watching their next class come in. It was one of their beginner classes, all sixth graders, and he and Rob split it up woodwinds and brass every day to make the most of their forty-five minutes with the students. “God bless, this class wears _me_ out,” he said with a sigh before he opened his thermos and poured a new cup of coffee. He knew it would be cold before he even got to drink it all, just like every other cup he’d had at school for the past ten years. 

“It’s because of the Bennington twins,” Rob smirked, then chuckled. “I’ve never been so happy to see two kids decide to play the flute in my whole life. That was my crowning achievement at last year’s instrument drive.”

“Yeah, thanks for that,” Mike remarked drily, watching the students make their way into the band hall. The Bennington twins were notorious before they ever stepped foot in the halls of McArther Middle School. Two identical exotic beauties who loved to play games on their teachers and pretend to be the other twin, who loved to dress alike, and whose friends sometimes didn’t even know which twin was Lily and which was Lila. Their elementary school teachers had been ecstatic to send them off to the middle school after six long kindergarten through fifth grade years.

Mike remembered the exact moment their mother, the beautiful Talinda Bennington, marched them into the instrument placement night at the end of their fifth grade year. She was the kind of woman that expected the world to stop for her when she walked into a room, and that night, it certainly did. Both he and Rob and fallen all over themselves in an attempt to make the city’s most recognized, high-power lawyer happy. Mike had been more than a little upset that both girls had insisted on playing the flute, though he had to admit, their facial structure was perfect for the instrument.

“There they are now, the little animals.” He watched Lily and Lila both retrieve their flute cases from their lockers and sit down in the front row of the set up. He had to keep them close to him or they’d be off task in a heart beat. He’d never seen such spoiled kids in his life. They were pretty girls and they knew how to work that to their advantage, but they also had a haunted, hollow look to their eyes that he caught on occasion. Mike suspected it had everything to do with the fact that they had grown up without their mother around. 

Everyone knew Talinda Bennington was a work-a-holic, and as far as Mike had been able to piece together, the girls had been raised by and now lived with their father. Mike had never met the man, but he had overheard Lily/Lila talking to a friend about going to their mother’s over a long weekend in October, and then the girls had used being at their mom’s as an excuse not to practice over the long winter break. He figured all of their behavior issues stemmed from their parent’s divorce and a father who had no idea how to handle the little devils.

“Come on,” Rob said, picking up his water bottle. “Bell’s about to ring, and if we’re not out there, they’ll burn the place down.”

“Bells are a minute off,” Mike complained, picking up his teacher’s edition of the method book they used along with his coffee mug and following Rob out into the main teaching space anyway. Most of their students were in their proper place when the bell rang, and Mike set his coffee cup down on top of the podium just as Lily/Lila raised her hand. He’d still not figured out which twin was which, and it was almost February.

“Yes?” he asked, his eyebrow quirked as he looked at Lily/Lila. 

“Mr. Shinoda! I need to go to the bathroom!” Lily/Lila exclaimed, turning to put her flute down on the chair behind her. Naturally, she put it key side down, and it was an absolute invitation for a broken rod or spring.

Mike sighed. “Don’t lay your flute down on the keys. I’m tired of fixing it. And the bell just rang. You know there’s a ten minute rule. You can’t leave the first ten minutes of the period. Now, band, I need you all to raise your stands and open you book to pa-”

“But Mr. Shinoda!” Lily/Lila exclaimed. “I need to go! It’s an emergency!” She looked around the room at her classmates and then at her twin before she dropped her voice like she was embarrassed. “It’s a _girl thing._ ”

It was the kiss of death as far as Mike was concerned. The last thing he wanted to do was deal with an angry Talinda Bennington over not letting her daughter go to the restroom to deal with unspeakable female catastrophes. “Fine,” he said with an eye roll. “Hurry up, you’re missing information when you’re in the bathroom.” He looked out over his students, who were all watching him expectantly. “Now, none of the rest of you ask me about the bathroom today. We have stuff to do.”

A chorus of complaints went up as Lily/Lila made a triumphant exit and Mike raised his hand to shush them all. “You guys know we have a grade today. Now, let’s get started.” 

Mike spent the next forty-five minutes walking around in-between his students, adjusting posture and hand position and all manner of things before it was time to take the grade. He tried not to be visibly frustrated at the twins, who despite his best efforts and years of experience, still weren’t making great sounds on their flutes, nor could they read notes and rhythms the way the other students were already managing to do. _It’s like they are deliberately sabotaging themselves,_ he decided as he looked at them. They were obviously bright students, and he couldn’t find one reason why they shouldn’t be on the same level as their classmates.

 _It’s because they talk all the time. And one of them is always in the bathroom._ Just now, Lily/Lila had come back from the bathroom with fresh makeup and a smirk, smelling like Bath and Body Works Cucumber Melon body spray. Mike hated that he’d been teaching middle school long enough to identify that scent, and he thought sixth grade was far too young to be wearing a full face of makeup. 

“Ladies, I think it’s probably time I had a talk with your parents about your progress,” Mike said as the class was cleaning out their instruments and packing up. He was standing in front of their music stands with his hands on his hips. “It seems to me as though you aren’t practicing at home.”

One of the twins looked up, her dark brown eyes large in her tanned, heart-shaped face. She flipped her long black hair off her shoulder with one hand and pulled her lips into a pout. “Mr. Shinoda,” she whined, “it’s hard to practice! Dad doesn’t know anything about music! He can’t even help us!”

“Yeah!” the other twin chimed in. “He says everything we do sounds good, and then you tell us it’s all wrong. And we don’t even know you. How do we know you’re not wrong?”

Mike rubbed his temples as Rob walked behind him, chuckling on his way back to the office. “Because I have two degrees in music. That’s how you know I’m not wrong. And if you two don’t start practicing, then you’re not going to pass my class.”

“What?!” Lily/Lila screeched. “You can’t fail us, Mr. Shinoda! Our mom says as long as we’re trying, you can’t fail us. Band is supposed to be fun!” She latched her flute case and stood up to toss it in her locker, the other twin right behind her. 

“Band is fun when you’re good at what you’re doing,” Mike amended. “And you get good at it by practicing.” He smoothed his hand over the front of his dark blue button down shirt and turned away from them. “You can expect a phone call home,” he said, ignoring the girls’ whining behind him as he picked up his coffee mug from the podium and headed for his office. It was finally his conference period, and he wasn’t even going to get to his paperwork because he had to call Lily and Lila’s parents. _Maybe just one parent. I’ll see what it says in the computer, who they live with, and I’ll call that parent. I think they live with dad. That’s what it sounds like, anyway._

He was just about to walk into the office when the main band hall door opened and his favorite eighth grade percussionist, Bryce, flew in the door. “Mr. Shinoda! Here’s my solo entry form! I’m sorry it’s late!”

Mike felt his shoulders drop as he stuck his hand out to take the late paper. “Bryce, you know better than to turn stuff in late. Give me one good reason why I should take this from you.” He glanced over the paperwork. It was all in order, complete with a parent signature and the fee receipt attached.

“Because I heard you took Zac’s?” Bryce asked hopefully, and Mike heard Rob snort from inside the office as he poured protein powder into his shaker bottle that Mike hated.

“Go to class, Bryce,” Mike answered with resignation in his voice. “I’m not writing you a pass,” he added before he stepped into the office and shut the door, throwing his laughing co-worker a glare as he added more paperwork to stack number three.

****

It was well past six o’clock before Mike walked through the door from his garage into the laundry room of his townhome and hung the keys to his silver Toyota Camry on the little hook next to the light switch. He walked past his completely utilitarian washer and dryer into the kitchen and breakfast area, setting his lunch bag, coffee thermos, and work bag on the counter next to the sink. Running his hand along the white Corian countertop, he walked over to the stainless steel refrigerator and opened it up. 

An assortment of vegetables and uncooked meat lined the shelves, but he was too tired to deal with any of it. Cooking for one wasn’t fun anyway. He still hadn’t gotten used to being alone, and he was too stubborn to admit that the townhome and all the memories left behind when Brad moved out were something he needed to let go of in order to move on with his life. _I really thought we were happy,_ he mentally whined again as he looked at the package of raw, wrapped fish on the shelf. _If I don’t cook that tonight, I’ll have to throw it out. And that’s a waste of money I just don’t have._

He reached for the paper wrapped salmon and set the package on the counter, then poked around in the crisper to find the asparagus he knew was in there. There was a tune stuck in his head from the contest music they were learning in his top band, and he hummed along as he lined a pan with foil and put the fish and asparagus in the glass dish, drizzling it all with olive oil and salt and pepper while the oven pre-heated. 

“I should open a bottle of wine,” he mumbled as he put away the seasonings and stood looking at the still clean kitchen. At least what he was making only required dirtying one dish. Maybe he’d even eat out of that dish. “White with fish,” he reminded himself as he looked up at the built-in wine rack Brad had installed where a cabinet used to be for his thirtieth birthday. It had been one of many surprises, all of which Mike had come to find out were trying to assuage his husband’s guilt over the affair he’d been having with a man who was barely over legal drinking age. The memory of discovering that affair had taken some of the admiration for the home improvements down a notch, but Mike still loved the townhome. He wasn’t ready to give up everything they had worked for, even though it had been easy for Brad to walk away. 

He knew he worked too much, and invested a lot in his kids… but he wouldn’t be a good band director if he didn’t. He knew he’d neglected Brad at times, but contest season was busy and tiring. Over time, Brad had come to resent everything he had once admired in Mike: his dedication, his love of and talent for music, his single-minded drive and determination for success. When Joey had come along with his carefree lifestyle and blue eyes and love of the beach, it hadn’t taken much convincing for Brad to abandon a decade together. _A whole decade. He knew how I was when he asked me to marry him. He knew how much I gave to my job. I didn’t change the terms. He changed his expectations._

The sticking point had probably been his lack of desire to adopt. Dealing with kids all day left him completely tapped out when it came to the energy or desire to have one of his own, but Brad had been wanting a child for years. Mike knew he’d let Brad down on that front, but asking him to parent while he was home after he parented and taught all day just felt like too much. He was happy with the way things were. Brad wasn’t. It had been that simple, except that Mike had still been in love when Brad walked away. With Joey.

Mike shook his head, grabbing his favorite bottle of white wine from the rack and opening the bottom freezer drawer to pop it in to chill. It would be the perfect temperature right about the time his fish was ready. Looking at the oven timer, he had a half hour to sit and plan for tomorrow’s classes before time to eat. He’d just settled into his chair at the whitewashed dining table when Lexie, the black and white cat he and Brad had adopted together, appeared from the living room. Mike leaned over and scooped the cat up, burying his face into her fur as she purred her approval that he’d finally made it home.

“Hey, Lex,” Mike gushed with affection as the cat kneaded her paws into his chest. “Thanks for coming to say hello. Did you have a good day?” He scratched behind his pet’s ears as she settled onto his lap. It was part of their routine now. Mike came home, and Lexie cuddled with him for a while before she took off for more interesting cat activities that didn’t include her owner. The cuddles always made him feel as though someone had actually missed him during the day. 

He opened his notebook and penciled out a plan for the next day with one hand as he stroked the cat with the other, finishing just as the timer on the oven signaled that dinner was ready. “Up you go,” he whispered to Lexie, knowing he wouldn’t see her again until bedtime as she dropped down to the kitchen floor and stretched before slinking off. He used two oven mitts to take the glass pan out of the oven, and he smiled as he inhaled the cooked fish and vegetables. Even if it was depressing to cook for one, he was glad he’d given in as his stomach rumbled. “I think I’ll even eat on the couch,” he said aloud to nobody as he went ahead and moved his food to a plate instead of eating out of the baking pan.

After he poured a glass of wine he carried both his plate and wine glass into the living room, setting them both on the glass coffee table as he reached for the remote. He sat down on the black leather couch and clicked around through his channels until he found the National Geographic channel. “Well, Lex, it looks like _Seconds From Disaster_ again,” he called out the cat as he picked up his dinner plate and wine glass. He set the plate on his lap, and took a generous sip of the wine. 

It hadn’t really been a bad day, just a typical mess of band classes and paper work, and not enough time to do any of it. _And the twins. At least they’ll be Rob’s problem next year. They won’t be good enough to be in anything but the bottom band. Then he won’t make fun of my headaches every day. They’ll be his headache to deal with._ Mike smiled to himself, enjoying the thought of relief from their pre-teen drama in just four months.

 _I bet their dad doesn’t even return my call. They seem like the kind of kids whose parents avoid the school at all costs._ Mike flaked off a piece of his fish and popped it in his mouth. It wasn’t too bad, he decided, as he watched a rerun of his favorite show that utilized computer simulation to show the series of events that led up to the moment of the disaster. The episode was about a department store collapse that has happened over a decade ago in South Korea, and the computer models were fascinating. Before the show was over, his plate was clean, and he’d even refilled his wine during a commercial. Lexie hopped up on the couch at some point in the show and stretched out across the back behind his head, occasionally swiping a paw at his neck, and Mike reached behind him and fed her a tiny piece of the salmon every time she begged for one. 

They stayed on the couch together for the rest of the evening, flipping channels and watching nothing before Mike decided he should go to bed. His alarm went off at five every morning so he could run six miles before school, and he knew if he wasn’t asleep by ten he wouldn’t be functional in rehearsal the next day. “Come on, Lexie,” he murmured to the cat, making his way slowly to the kitchen. Somehow he’d managed to drink almost the entire bottle of wine before bed, something that had been happening more and more since the divorce became final. 

He made sure his baking pan and plate were in the dishwasher, and wiped the counters down with his white kitchen towel. He filled Lexie’s dish with fresh water, and locked the back door to the garage. Flipping the lights off, he waited to see if the cat would follow him upstairs, but she didn’t budge from her nest on the back of the couch. 

“Night, Lexie,” Mike said as he turned to climb the stairs quietly. He knew the cat would stay downstairs to complete her crazy midnight run throughout the house before she came up to lay with him. His feet sank into the plush gray carpeting that covered the stairs, muffling his footsteps as he reached the second floor. Mike saw that the door to his office was open, but he walked right past it on his way to the master bedroom. He wasn’t doing any more work before bed. 

The same black furniture he’d bought with Brad all those years ago greeted him as he turned on the light and started unbuttoning his shirt. As it was every day, the bed was neatly made with the white and gray quilt and matching sheets, and his pajamas were folded and sitting neatly on his side of the bed. He dropped his work clothes into the hamper and went to complete his night routine: shower, shave, teeth brushing, take a piss. It was all like clockwork, and Mike was peeling back the blankets and climbing into bed at 9:59 pm. 

Right before he turned off the lights, he glanced at his phone, plugged in on the bedside table. A notification had popped up on his screen, catching his eye. He moved his hand away from the lamp switch as his iPhone screen faded to black, and picked it up so he could see what the notification had been. With a frustrated sigh, he set it back down on the table and flipped the lamp switch off, dropping his head onto the pillow and closing his eyes. It was his least favorite automated notification from his school email account - and there were two of them, back to back.

_You have been scheduled for a Parent-Teacher Conference on January 20, 2010 at 3:10 in the front conference room for student Bennington, Lily._

_You have been scheduled for a Parent-Teacher Conference on January 20, 2010 at 3:10 in the front conference room for student Bennington, Lila._

Mike cursed himself for calling the twin’s father and leaving a message. He hated PTC’s more than anything at school - including faculty meetings - and he figured that the dad had probably sent an email after hours to the school counselor to set up a meeting after missing his call. _Damn it, Anna is such a push-over. She always wants to schedule face to face meetings because it’s “better for people to see each other when they are talking”, or some new-age bullshit._ An image of the school counselor for students whose last names started A through P floated through his mind, and he mentally stuck his tongue out at her mouse brown hair and polyester blouses. 

Anna Hillinger meant well, and the kids loved her, but she was a pain in the teacher’s asses. She especially had a way of making Mike’s life more complicated than it needed to be by messing up his schedules and putting kids in the wrong classes, then pretending it was all just a misunderstanding while she took three weeks to sort it out at the start of the school year. Every year it was the same thing, ever since the year she’d come to McArthur and tried to flirt with him, not knowing he was gay. The memory of that awkward conversation where he’d turned her down by mentioning his boyfriend skidded across his mind before he quickly dismissed it. It wasn’t his fault she didn’t have a gaydar. Brad had thought the whole thing was funny at the time, and they’d been married six short months later. Mike pushed the thoughts of their wedding out of his mind. 

_I hate conferences. And what am I supposed to say to this man’s face? Your girls are the most irritating creatures on the planet? They don’t seem to want to be in band, they’re always primping in the bathroom. Perhaps cosmetology school would be a better fit?_ Mike buried his face in his pillow. He knew none of that would come out in a conversation with the father tomorrow. It would be a standard meeting that ended with him offering extra help to catch the girls up, on his own time, after the dad lamented over his inability to help because it wasn’t like math, or any subject he’d taken before. Mike had heard it all a million times. Excuse after excuse for lazy kids, instead of just admitting that maybe they should take theater instead. 

_I hate that theater guy. Fuckin' Dave. Always handing out 100’s like they’re jolly ranchers. You have to earn your grade in my class._ Mike rolled over and grabbed the extra pillow on the bed, hugging it close. It was better than having an empty space in the bed next to him, and he tried to shut off his mind and stop thinking about the conference. _Maybe it will go quickly and I can get my paperwork finished. Yeah, right. I’ll never get my paperwork finished._

With a long-suffering sigh, Mike reminded himself that he loved his job, paperwork and all. Tomorrow would be just like any other day, and maybe something good would come of meeting the twin’s father. With the hopeful thought of a positive outcome on his mind, he finally drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

****  
TBC


	2. Parent-Teacher Conference

Chester Bennington stood in front of the vanity in his bathroom, going through his typical morning routine of conformity and self-hatred. With distaste he buttoned the long sleeved cuffs of his white dress shirt, one of five he owned with the insurance company logo embroidered in red on the left breast pocket. He tucked it into his navy blue dress pants and scowled as he buckled his brown leather belt that matched his brown dress shoes. 

The job at the insurance agency was supposed to have been a temporary one, all those years ago when Talinda was finishing law school and the girls had finally started public school. They needed the money badly after he’d stayed home for years to take care of the twins, born just months before his twenty-second birthday, and they’d somehow managed to live off financial aid and her parents until he went back to work. 

_Going to that bar was the worst twenty-first birthday decision ever._ Chester quickly shook away the thought as he reached for his toothbrush. He loved his girls, and even though the surprise pregnancy with a woman he woke up next to the morning after he was legally allowed to drink wasn’t how he’d envisioned his life, it was his now. He still couldn’t understand how he’d had so much to drink that night that he’d ended up sleeping with a woman. 

He looked at his teeth in the mirror, inspecting them for pearly-whiteness and trying to ignore the little gap on the side that he’d wanted fixed since he was a teenager. _Oh well. Maybe when the girls move out, I’ll scrape enough together for Invisalign or something._ He tried not to think about how he’d be old enough that it wouldn’t matter if his teeth were perfect or not once he got back into the dating scene. _Back into. How about, into at all. That’s more the way it is._

His dark brown curls were close cropped and messy, but short of shaving his head, there wasn’t much he could do with them. He slid his glasses on, thinking about how he looked like an accountant or librarian, or something as equally boring as an insurance salesman with the big black frames prominent on his face, hiding his caramel brown eyes. With one last scowl at the plain black plugs in his ears he had to wear for work in place of the gauges he adored, he flipped off the light switch and descended the stairs into the chaos that was his eleven-year old twin daughters getting ready for school.

“Dad!” Lila exclaimed the second she saw him, a hand on her hip. “We’re out of waffles again. Again! Didn’t you go to the store this weekend while we were at mom’s?” 

Before Chester could get a word out, Lily started in on him too. “You promised you’d get Nutella, too, and there’s not any!” She looked seconds away from a meltdown as the twins stood in the kitchen, empty handed, complaining about the absence of their favorite breakfast items.

Chester took a deep breath. Dealing with them was like dealing with Talinda - multiplied by four. “How about I make pancakes this morning, sweethearts? There’s syrup, and you love my pancakes.” He took a few steps over to pull Lily into a hug, then kissed Lila on the forehead. “Go get your backpacks ready for school, and I’ll get started on them.”

“Well… I guess pancakes are okay,” Lila offered, a small smile on her lips that were covered in sticky pink lip gloss. “Thanks for making them on a school day,” she added, turning away in her black leggings and oversized purple sweatshirt with a unicorn head on the front of it. Lily was dressed identically, and both girls had their long black hair pulled back into ponytails. Chester wondered briefly when they would stop dressing alike to torture their teachers.

“Don’t forget your flutes,” Chester added as he pulled out two skillets for the pancakes. “I’m meeting your band teacher today to talk about your progress.”

Lily stopped dead in her tracks. “What?! He called you? Mr. Shinoda sucks, dad! He’s so mean! We didn’t do anything!”

“Yeah!” Lila exclaimed as she stuffed a pink glittery notebook into her bag. “He’s always telling us we’re wrong! Like, he wants us to do our face a certain way, and hold the flute a certain way, and my arms get tired, Dad!” She zipped up her pink and green paisley Vera Bradley backpack and turned to face Chester.

“I’m sure you both are over-reacting,” Chester said calmly as he poured pancake batter into the hot skillets. “He called yesterday but I didn’t get the message until I got home. So I decided I’d just go up and meet with him today. That’s what conference periods are for. To meet teachers. I’m sure he’s just wanting us all to be on the same page. I noticed your grades aren’t very good in his class.” 

“Because he’s _mean_ ” Lily complained again, complete with a stamp of her foot this time around. “He says if it’s not perfect it’s not right, and mom says we should be given credit for trying.”

Chester rolled his eyes at the pancakes with his back to his daughters. “Your mother was never in band,” Chester said evenly. “I’m sure Mr. Shinoda has his reasons for grading the way he does. So I’m going to go talk with him about it. I’m sure it will clear up any misunderstanding.”

Both girls sat down at the kitchen table, waiting to be served. “Dad, he’s just not any fun.” Lila proclaimed it as though that were enough reason for them both to be failing band. “And if he’s not fun, then we don’t want to be there.”

“Look here,” Chester said, turning away from the stove with the spatula in his hand. “You two wanted to be in band, and those flutes weren’t cheap. I don’t care if this Mr. Shinoda is the meanest old teacher in the building, you both are going to learn to play the flute.” He didn’t add that he’d had to pull money from savings to contribute his half for the instruments. Talinda had been totally unwilling to budge when it came to sharing the cost for the three thousand dollar flutes, and renting wasn’t good enough for her daughters. _At least we can sell them if they quit,_ he thought.

“But Daddy,” Lily whined, turning her big puppy dog eyes on him, and her twin quickly followed suit. 

“No buts, sweethearts,” Chester said firmly, turning back to the pancakes quickly. He was a sucker for those faces and he knew it would be far too easy to give in to whatever they wanted if he kept looking at them. “I’m going to talk with Mr. Shinoda today, and we’ll figure out how to get those grades up. I’m sure he’s not as awful as you say he is, and if the past tells me anything, I’m sure if he’s mean to you, it’s your fault somehow.”

Lily and Lila shared a sideways glance over their folded arms on the breakfast table. “Who, us?” they said sweetly at the same time, putting on their best angelic faces.

Chester just flipped the pancakes and shook his head.

****

“Damnit, Rob, this office isn’t big enough for all your crap!” Mike kicked the stray stick bag out of his way as he walked into their cramped office, ignoring the fact that it was his assistant’s birthday. 

“Forget your lunch, again?” Rob asked, unruffled by Mike’s brisk morning tone and general crankiness. After six years together, Rob was well aware that Mike wasn’t a morning person and couldn’t speak nicely until he’d had at least one cup of coffee. “Or is this a standard Shinoda morning greeting?”

Mike threw him a withering glare as he dropped his laptop bag on his crooked chair and set his coffee thermos and mug on the only clean four square inches on his desk. “I didn’t bring my lunch because it’s your birthday, asshat. I figured I’d go pick us up some Mexican food or something.” 

Rob pulled his feet off the counter next to his desk and turned his chair around to look at Mike. “Really? That sounds awesome! We never get to eat real food during the school day.”

“You know I hate when you put your feet up there,” Mike said, pointing at the shared countertop where the printer and phone lived. “And yeah, I thought Mexican was in order. Melty cheese, you know? I’ll pay for it, but you’ll have to go pick it up if we’re gonna have it at lunch.”

Rob nodded with a grin. He was used to picking up food since Mike’s band class happened during the lunch period. “Wanna share quesadillas?”

“Fuck, yes. Is that even a question? Let’s do steak this time though. We’ve had chicken the past two.”

“I think I should get to pick. It’s my birthday,” Rob threw out, even though he wanted steak, too. He just liked to remind Mike how single-minded he could be at times.

“Oh… yeah. Sorry,” Mike mumbled as he moved his laptop bag to the spot on the floor next to his desk where he always kept it. “We can do chicken.”

“I’m just bustin’ your balls,” Rob said with a chuckle. “You’re too easy sometimes.” He shook his shaker bottle just to emphasize his point. He knew Mike hated that bottle and the protein shakes he drank twice a day. “Oh, yeah, we have a faculty meeting this morning, I forgot to write it on the calendar.”

Mike sighed as he poured coffee from his thermos to his mug and screwed the top back on to keep his second, third, and fourth cups hot for later. “I guess my whole day is just fucked then,” he said, looking over the paperwork on his desk. “I’ve got a conference with the twin’s parents this afternoon.”

Rob sat up straighter in his chair. “A conference? You don’t do conferences. That’s like, the first thing they tell new teachers here. Shinoda doesn’t do conferences, so don’t fuck things up with band kids. What the hell happened yesterday?” He rubbed his hands over the top of his tan corduroy cargo pants that Mike usually made fun of and looked at his computer, where his email was open. “I don’t have a notification. It’s just for you?”

“I ought to make your ass go with me,” Mike threatened. “Moral support or to show you how it’s done, or some shit. I hate conferences.” He made a face as his desk chair leaned to the side. One of these days he was going to finally buy a new chair, and toss this one in the dumpster. He’d been trying to remind himself to do it for three years now, but it just hadn’t happened yet. “I called to talk with dad about their lack of progress yesterday, and I had to leave a voicemail. I guess he emailed about a conference, and you know the rest.”

“Fuckin’ Anna,” Rob breathed, turning back around to face Mike. “She should have just let you call him back this morning. I swear she’s had it out for you since day one.”

“More like day ten,” Mike corrected with an eyebrow wiggle, and they both busted into laughter. Anna hadn’t been subtle about her attraction to Mike when they first met. “Anyway… I give up on getting anything productive done already today with two meetings on the books.” 

Out of habit, Mike glanced at the clock they had on the wall, which had read 9:36 for the last four years. It was battery powered, and Mike refused to spend any more of his own money on things for the band hall. The school had yet to provide more batteries for the clock, so it was stuck on 9:36, presumably forever. He checked his watch and then raised his coffee mug to Rob. “Come on, we better get down to the library. I hate being the last one into the meeting. It makes us look as bad as Dave.” 

He straightened the front of his pale green button down shirt - an exact replica of yesterday’s blue one, just in a different color - and headed for the office door. “Grab us a pen, my hands are full,” he ordered Rob on his way out. 

“Full? Of shit?” Rob grumbled, reaching back across his desk for a blue one even though he knew Mike had a free hand. He and Mike shared the same affinity for a certain kind of pen, and often accused each other of stealing them off the other’s desk. A student whose mom ran a sticker business off Etsy helpfully provided them each one hundred tiny clear labels that read “Mr. Bourdon” and “Mr. Shinoda” to label their things. After they spent an afternoon sticking labels to anything and everything, the number of missing pens was cut dramatically. However, Rob looked down to see that the pen he grabbed had a label on it that said “Mr. Shinoda” and covered the label with his palm. “Got one,” he answered, falling into step next to his head director.

Rob was plotting how to discreetly peel the label off as they made their way to the library, picking up the choir and orchestra teachers along the way. He saw another teacher meet them in the hallway out of the corner of his eye as he was talking to Mr. High, the orchestra teacher, and glanced over at Mike. The art teacher - Jason Shinoda - had joined their group on the trek across the building to the library, and Rob knew how much it got under Mike’s skin that his brother was the department chair for performing and visual arts. Mike had been at McArthur longer, but Jason was a pro ass-kisser.

“Any idea what the meeting is about, Jay?” Mike asked, barely glancing at his little brother. 

Jason had on paint splattered gray pants and a shirt that looked like it had seen better days. That was one of the things that irritated Mike the most. He couldn’t understand why Jason didn’t try a little harder to look professional at school. It didn’t matter what Jason wore, though. Everyone, students and teachers alike, and especially administrators, loved Jason. He was always cheerful and smiling, a “yes” man in every sense, and he never hesitated to create a mural for the spring talent show or a back drop for a theater play. His students’ artwork graced the hallways of the district admin building as Art Festival winners, and he did all of those things without a hard ass reputation like his older brother. Mike and Rob had an award winning program, but it was achieved through drive and determination, not creativity. 

“I think it’s just a standard faculty meeting. Going over some stuff for testing next month, and some training we have to do. Oh! I heard you’ve got a _parent conference_ this afternoon,” Jason added with an amused flip in his voice.

“I swear, Hillinger can’t hold water,” Mike grumbled, frustrated as the co-workers he was with started teasing him. “It’s the Bennington twins!” he interjected as a means of defense. “I think it’s dad coming up this afternoon. They either need to get with it or get out of my class. It’s like a “Come to Jesus” meeting,” he added.

“You think you’ll get anything through to him? As far as I’ve heard, both the parents think those girls can do no wrong,” Jason said, grinning ear to ear at his brother’s flustered speech. 

“You pay too much attention to gossip.” Mike ended the conversation with a flip of his free hand and took a sip of his coffee. “Let’s go see about this training,” he said as they stepped up to the library doors and he opened one for everyone to file through. “In the back, Bourdie,” he hissed, shooting Rob a meaningful glance. Mike had no intention of sitting next to his brother in the meeting, but Rob already knew that, following the group in and veering off to take the two seats closest to the exit in the back. 

Mike sat down next to him and leaned his head back. “What am I going to say to this guy?” he asked Rob in a low voice. “I swear, if he gives me a bunch of reasons why his little darlings shouldn’t have to do what everyone else does, I’m going to lose it.”

“I don’t know. Just don’t let him do that thing all the dumb parents do where they suggest maybe the kid should just play drums. I’ll kill you if that happens.”

Mike perked up visibly and looked at Rob. “That’s it! That’s how I’ll solve my problems! Change them to percussion and dump them off on you! Thanks, man, awesome suggestion.”

“Totally not what I said-”

“But totally what you meant!”

“I said ‘I’ll kill you’, Shinoda, and I mean that. I don’t care if there’s witnesses overhearing us right now, I promise you, if you change the Bennington twin’s schedules-”

“Ooh, you’ve got the Bennington twins?” Lacey Armstrong said sympathetically as she sat down in front of Mike and Rob. Lacey was a seventh grade English teacher that Rob had been crushing on since last school year. “I hear they’re nothing but trouble,” she went on, twisting a lock of her long blonde hair as she smiled at Rob. “Are they in _your class_ , Rob?” 

“Uhh… no, Mike’s got both of them,” Rob answered as he slowly corrected his slouchy posture. “But he’s trying to move them to my class.”

“I did not say that,” Mike defended, watching his friend as he sat up and tried not to look like a teenage boy with a crush on a cheerleader. “See, I’ve got a conference this afternoon with their dad, and-”

“Wow, Shinoda, a conference? Who did you piss off?” Lacey turned her attention to Mike, ready to give him hell, when the principal stood up and cleared his throat. Lacey turned around with a snap and Mike breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank god for Hahn,” Mike mumbled under his breath to Rob, putting his focus up on Joe at the front. His mind tumbled through various scenarios of how his meeting with the twin’s dad would go before he forced his mind away from the topic. He had a tendency to obsess over things to the point of it becoming unhealthy, and Mike knew if he kept imagining what to say to Mr. Bennington, he’d be grumpy the rest of the day. 

The next thing he knew, Rob was poking his arm with the pen he’d brought along and the meeting was over. “Shit. I didn’t hear anything he said,” Mike said, scrambling up from his seat and following Rob out the door. The bell to dismiss the kids from the holding cell of the cafeteria to their first period class was already ringing, and Mike looked down at his watch. _8:44. Great. Now the bells are one minute ahead. Seriously?_

He mentally ticked off a to-do list as he followed Rob back across the school, weaving his way through the mass of kids headed down to first period athletics. They both said a quick goodbye to their co-workers as they passed the art, choir, and orchestra rooms before Mike gathered himself together enough to throw a jab Rob’s way. “You sure were drooling over Lacey. When are you gonna get the balls to ask her out? Seems like that would be a great birthday present.”

“How about never?” Rob tossed back as he pushed the band hall door open. “I have no desire to work with anyone I’m dating.”

“You’re so full of shit, Bourdie,” Mike responded, grabbing his thermos from the desk and refilling his coffee as the kids started coming in the room. “I think even the kids know the way you look at her.” Mike could have sworn he saw a tint of pink on Rob’s cheeks before gathered up his stick bag from where Mike had pushed it out of the way earlier.

“This is a hostile working environment,” Rob mumbled, causing Mike to burst into laughter. It was a long running joke between the two of them. One of the yearly trainings they had to endure before school started was a video on sexual harassment in the workplace. Somehow the catch phrase “hostile working environment” had stuck with both of them, used frequently to irritate the other and put an end to the almost constant teasing banter.

“Go call the hotline and report me,” Mike teased before looking at Rob seriously. “But don’t expect any birthday quesadillas if the district police come and haul me away.”

Rob waved his hand over his shoulder as he walked away, trying to hold back his laughter as he went to start his rehearsal. “That’s what all the criminals say.” 

****

The day blew by, with the kids learning quickly of Mr. Bourdon’s birthday and singing or playing the birthday song in every class. The quesadillas and queso had been on point, and Mike _almost_ forgot about his meeting until sixth period rolled around, and the Bennington twins spent the hour reminding him of every reason he had accumulated to tell their father that maybe band just wasn’t for them.

Now Mike sat at the conference table, a folder placed neatly on the table in front of him. Inside were two printouts from his gradebook, one for each girl. Both Lily and Lila were currently failing band due to unsigned practice records and missing playing grades. The papers were merely for back up, if Mike felt like he needed them. What he really was hoping to accomplish was to let their father know that he was wasting his money if they refused to properly participate in class and practice at home. Usually, that was all it took for the parent to either help out with encouraging their child, or move them into a different elective.

It was bad that Mike was really hoping this dad would move the kids to theater. _That’s where their dramatic asses belong. Dave would love them._ A brief scowl crossed his face as he thought of Mr. Farrell. They’d had an ongoing war since he took over the theater department two years ago. Mike had well-established rules and routines by then. He’d been at McArthur for eight years when Dave arrived, all bald with a ginger goatee - which Mike hated - and he wasn’t going to compromise his program for the fun and free spirited Mr. Farrell and his theater production class. It also really annoyed him that Jason and Dave got along well and frequently went out for beer on Fridays after school to decompress and shoot the breeze. 

“Everything alright, Mike?”

Mike’s attention went straight to Anna, who was looking at him with a mix of concern and triumph.

“Fine, yes, just ready to get this over with. I’m still not sure a conference was necessary, Ms. Hillinger. I don’t have much to say that couldn’t have been dealt with over the phone,” he said pointedly. “Now we’re all in this meeting, and of course the dad is late. Of course.” Mike tapped his Apple watch face and a picture of Lexie popped up, along with the time, declaring that Mr. Bennington was now two minutes late.

“Not everyone runs as tight a ship as you, _Mr. Shinoda._ ” Anna pressed her lips together and looked toward the door, her eyes stopping on the assistant principal at the other end of the table. “Elisa, you didn’t get any word that we’d been canceled, did you?” 

Ms. Boren looked up from her Blackberry. “I’m in my email now, I don’t see anything.” She glanced over at Mike. “Mike, you’re going to give yourself an aneurism if you don’t relax. Anna’s right. Most of the world doesn’t operate on Shinoda Standard Time.”

“Speaking of,” Mike started - ready to launch into his complaint about the bells not ringing on time - right as the door to the conference room opened. The receptionist, Mrs. Salazar, held the door open for the parent Mike had summoned. _Actually, he summoned me. And… holy shit._

Many years of polite manners brought Mike immediately to his feet as Mr. Bennington rushed into the room, his car keys in one hand and a black notebook in the other. His shirt, which had been tucked into his pants, was disheveled, sleek on the front put pulled out in the back from sitting in the car. Even though it was an unexciting work uniform, Mike could see the slim build and a hint of muscle underneath the white dress shirt. But it was the eyes that had Mike almost speechless. Wide and bright behind dark framed glasses, they were the color of warm honey. 

Good thing he was a professional. 

“Mr. Bennington,” he greeted as he found his voice, offering his hand for a handshake, “I’m Mike Shinoda. Lily and Lila’s band director. It’s good to meet you.” _And by meet you, I mean drown in your beautiful eyes._ He watched as the dad shifted his car keys to his left hand and extended his right, and then their palms connected.

_**SNAP!**_

The handshake broke before they could even grasp each other’s hands. 

“Wow!” Anna commented, surprise in her voice. “That’s some serious static electricity!” She looked back and forth between Mr. Bennington and Mike, who were both momentarily frozen, looking at each other.

Mr. Bennington recovered himself first, a small chuckle escaping from his lips. “Mr. Shinoda,” he repeated warmly, a smile gracing his face as he took Mike’s hand between both of his and gave it a squeeze. “That’s quite the greeting.”

“It’s these fake leather chairs on this carpet,” Mike started to explain, but Elisa cut him off.

“Mr. Bennington, we’re so pleased you could join us this afternoon. I’m Elisa Boren, your girls’ assistant principal.” She flashed a toothy smile and extended her hand. “I think you’re safe from the static now,” she tried to joke.

It felt to Mike as though the twins’ father was reluctant to let his hand go and reach to shake Elisa’s. _He took my hand between both of his. His hands are soft. And fuck me, that smile. Jesus, Mike, he’s obviously not gay, he’s got kids. Who are your students! Pull yourself together! You can’t be crushing on a parent!_ Mike waited, watching silently as Anna introduced herself, then invited the father to sit down with them. Belatedly, Mike took his own seat across from Mr. Bennington, and he could have sworn he saw a twinkle of amusement in the man’s eyes.

“Thank you for coming, Mr. Bennington. I called you yesterday to discuss Lily and Lila’s progress in band, and I was sorry I missed you.” Mike’s mouth had gone on autopilot, even as his brain was cataloguing everything about the man across from him. The mysterious black plugs in his ears, the natural quirk to his eyebrows, his thin set lips, the adorable dark curls on his head. Mr. Bennington was a hottie in Mike’s book, and he decided he was going to enjoy looking at him while it lasted. Maybe he could memorize enough about him to entertain a fantasy later after dinner.

_What? No! Mike Shinoda, you are fucking sick!_ Mike berated himself in his head for even thinking that way as Mr. Bennington spoke up. He didn’t look at anyone other than Mike. 

“Please, Mr. Shinoda. Call me Chester. I apologize for missing your call, I was dealing with a client.” He pointed at the insurance logo on his breast pocket. “People can get really feisty when someone hits their car.”

“I’m sure,” Mike agreed weakly. _Chester. I can’t call him by his first name. He’s a parent! Of my students!_ “Well, Mr. Bennington-”

“Chester.”

Mike sucked in a quick breath, aware that both Elisa and Anna were looking at him like he’d lost his mind. He kept his focus on _Chester’s_ beautiful eyes. “Of course. Chester. I wanted to know if you were hearing the girls practicing any at home? They haven’t turned in any practice records so far this grading period, and that’s twenty-five percent of their grade.”

Chester tilted his head to the side. “They do bring their flutes home every day. But, no… I can’t recall hearing them actually play them. I was unaware they had homework.” He flipped open the black notebook he was carrying, and scribbled something inside.

_He’s left handed._ Mike caught himself watching as Chester looked up at him over the top of his glasses. “Yes! They should be practicing what we work on in class nightly.”

“I’ll see to that tonight,” Chester promised agreeably.

Mike nodded his head. This wasn’t going the way he’d planned at all. “There’s also the matter of the girls missing class to use the restroom. They’re missing valuable instruction time when they are away, and usually they are gone for quite some time. They frequently come back looking quite made up and smelling like perfume,” he added diplomatically.

“That’s their mother in them,” Chester commented, continuing to scribble notes in his book. “I told her they didn’t need makeup, they’re beautiful on their own. But she insisted the right amount of makeup was fine.”

“They are beautiful girls,” Anna tossed into the conversation, blushing slightly as both men looked in her direction as though she were interrupting something important.

Chester turned his eyes back to Mike, sitting up straight in his chair. “Is it both of them leaving? Or just Lily? She’s always had a history of trying to get out of class, but Lila loves school. I’d really be disappointed to know she’s taking on Lily’s bad habits.” 

Mike felt his hands start to sweat. “I, ah, well… I think it’s both of them…” The truth was, he had no idea if it was Lily or Lila or both of them on different days. 

“You think?” Chester asked, his voice a little sharper. “Mr. Shinoda, you _do_ know the girls apart, right?”

Elisa and Anna looked at Mike, both women’s eyes wide as they waited for his answer. “I, I, of course, Mr. Bennington. I believe they are both running off to the bathroom more than necessary.”

“Chester,” Chester reminded Mike with a snarky undertone in his voice. “Well, Mr. Shinoda, I suggest you tell my girls they are not permitted to use the restroom during band. That should keep them in class. I will address it at home, as well.” He laid his pen in the crack of the open notebook and looked straight at Mike. “Mr. Shinoda, I was never in band. I have absolutely zero musical talent, so I’m not sure if my sweethearts are on track in your class or not, which is what you called to discuss. In your opinion, are they where they should be? Or are they falling behind?”

Mike was grateful for the excuse to open his folder and escape Chester’s penetrating gaze for a moment. “I’ve printed off their grades for you, and as you can see, they’re both currently failing.” He took out the papers and slid them across the table to Chester, then flipped the folder closed. “Honestly, I don’t feel as though they are putting forth their best effort. They are both very smart, but they aren’t working very hard in my class.” Mike swallowed as he watched Chester study the grade printouts.

It was very quiet in the conference room until Chester looked up at Mike again. “Well, Mr. Shinoda, what can we do to get them where they need to be? Their mother and I have made a large investment in those instruments, and I would like to see them be successful. They’ve never stuck with anything. Karate. Soccer. Softball.” He sat back and regarded Mike with a thoughtful gaze. “I want them to be dedicated to something. I want them to see that hard work pays off. They’re spoiled, I know, and that’s my fault. They’re totally Daddy’s girls. I stayed home with them until they went to school, and it was just me and them until they were almost six.”

Mike was familiar with this part of a parent teacher conference. The part where the parent gave way more background information than was actually necessary to understand and solve the problem. It was something he typically hated, but he found himself hanging on Chester’s words breathlessly.

“When they told me they wanted to try band I was hesitant, knowing their work ethic, which is totally my fault. There was a lot of playtime with dad until school started.” Chester chuckled, and Mike smiled at the sound. He knew he was grinning like an idiot, but Chester’s laugh was contagious. “We have friends whose kids have gone through your program and they had nothing but great things to say about you. That you were hard, but fair. My girls need that, Mr. Shinoda. So how are we going get them to where they need to be?”

All Mike heard was the word _we_ as he watched the way Chester’s lips formed syllables. “We?” he repeated, his eyes flicking up to meet Chester’s again. Mike felt like he was drowning in the warm honey… caramelized toffee… cream filled coffee color of Chester Bennington’s eyes.”Yes, of course, by we, you mean me, and I would love to help them after school once or twice a week. We don’t have late busses, so I could only work with them if you or your wife-“

“Ex-wife,” Chester interrupted.

“Yes, yes, of course, I’m so sorry, Mr. Bennington-”

“Chester.”

“Right.” Mike closed his eyes for a moment and tried to regroup. He was accustomed to being the one in charge of a parent meeting, but somehow Chester Bennington had walked into the conference room - late! - and managed to take control. Anna and Elisa practically had their mouths hanging open as they watched the infamous Bennington twins’ father fluster the hell out of Mr. Always-Put-Together Mike Shinoda. “ _Chester,_ ” Mike said with emphasis. “If you’re willing to pick them up from school, I really think some one on one time would do them good.” He couldn’t believe he was offering his free time to help the students whom just thirty minutes ago he was hoping to get out of his band program all together. _If they stay after school for help, I’ll see him again. Chester. Chester, with those eyes and that smile and that body. Fuck._

Mike was locked into Chester’s gaze as the amusement on his face shifted into something different, something Mike couldn’t quite put his finger on. If he’d been out at a party, a bar, around people like him, he would have thought that look was interest. But this was the father of two of his students. Presumably heterosexual, due to the fact those two students even existed. He shook away the blooming desire in his chest and focused his mind on work.

“Mr. Shinoda. I appreciate your willingness to do extra for my girls. They need someone pushing them in their life, and that’s just not my specialty. I tend to give into them too easily. It’s guilt, I guess.” Chester stopped, and for the first time in the conference, broke the eye contact between them and looked out the small window in thought for a moment before he looked back at Mike. He took a second to scan what he could see of Mike Shinoda, his face and black hair, his shoulders and his chest, before he captured Mike’s dark eyes and smiled again. “I think some extra help would be great for them. I promise to be on time to pick them up, I don’t want to keep you from your… family?” Chester tilted his head to the side again, looking pointedly at Mike’s bare left hand, and Mike’s breath caught in his chest.

“Oh, no, no worries about that. This job is my family,” Mike said, then quickly added, “and my cat.” _Shut up, Mike. This man does not care about your sad, lonely life with your cat._

“Very well, then, Mr. Shinoda.” Mike watched as Chester winked - _winked!_ \- at him and then asked, “anything else I can do for you?”

Mike blinked twice as he looked at Chester. He could think of about ten different things off the top of his head that Chester could do for him, none of which were an appropriate topic of conversation for a parent-teacher conference. “I think that’s all, Mr. Benn… _Chester_. I appreciate your time this afternoon.” He rose as Chester moved to stand and take Mike’s hand.

“The pleasure is all mine,” Chester said as their hands connected, then _**SNAP!**_

The two men stood looking at each other for a second before Chester wrapped his other hand around Mike’s, holding their handshake between both of his hands the way he had earlier. “This static electricity is a bitch,” he commented before Mike pulled his hand back. “I’ll be in touch, Mr. Shinoda.”

Elisa rose from her seat hurriedly. “I’ll see you out, Mr. Bennington,” she said, throwing Mike a look. He bit his lip and couldn’t help but watch Chester’s fine, tight ass as he turned and walked out of the conference room.

“Wow, Mike,” Anna said, pushing her chair away from the table and standing up. “I’ve never seen you that flustered with a parent before.” 

“I’m not flustered,” Mike objected. “And how would you know? I don’t do conferences, Anna. That’s a well-known fact.” He looked down at the two grade reports on the table and scooped them back into his folder. “Tell Elisa I’ve got paperwork to do. If she needs me I’ll be in my office.”

“Sure thing,” Anna responded, tucking her long brown hair behind her ear. “It’s a shame he’s a parent, I definitely felt a spark there.” She looked at Mike and grinned as he blushed.

“You felt static,” he said flatly as he rolled his eyes. The truth was, his heart was racing, the sound of Chester’s laugh, his lips and eyes, the feel of his hands imprinted on his memory. “I’ll talk with you later.” He hurried out the conference room door before Anna could say anything else. 

****  
TBC


	3. Flute Sectionals

Mike squeezed a pea-sized drop of toothpaste on his toothbrush. Pea-sized, because that was the recommended amount, and Mike Shinoda was a rule follower. He ran his toothbrush under the water and turned off the faucet in his efforts to conserve, and stood brushing his teeth and staring at himself in the mirror. He was shirtless - so as not to take the chance that toothpaste would drip onto his undershirt - and he took his daily glance in the mirror to see that he had neither gained weight or put on any muscle. Everything was exactly as it always had been. 

Even Lexie followed her morning routine, appearing at Mike’s feet as soon as she heard the faucet. Mike watched as she daintily hopped up on the countertop and looked at him, her tail twitching lazily as she waited for her owner to reach over to Brad’s sink and turn the water back so she could drink from the running stream. He used to bicker with Brad about letting the cat up on the counter, and Brad’s defense always involved their lack of knowledge about what the cat did every day while they were away at work. Brad would tell the same story about Lexie dancing on the countertops in the kitchen like a stripper and Mike would laugh, and Lexie would get her way and be allowed to drink from the faucet as Mike vowed tomorrow would be different.

The only thing that had ended up being different about tomorrow was that Brad was gone; the side of the double vanity where all of his personal items used to sit bare, vacant. Every morning Lexie still hopped up on the counter, and every morning since he’d left, Mike turned on Brad’s faucet for her. It had been over a year, and they both still missed him.

Mike didn’t even notice the small sigh that escaped his chest as he rinsed his toothbrush, patted it dry, and put it away in the holder next to the sink. “That’s enough, Lexie-girl,” he murmured softly, turning off the supply of water and smiling as the cat swiped her paw at his offending hand. “You want to pick out my shirt today?”

Lexie was not having it. She watched from her perch on the counter as Mike stepped into his closet and reached for the next button-down shirt in his rotation. Today was a soft pink shirt with gray pinstripes that was one of his favorites, but he hesitated. Today was Tuesday, the day he stayed after school with the Bennington twins and helped them with their flute playing. Today was the day he saw Chester, and for some reason, the pink and gray shirt didn’t feel right.

He frowned. There were eleven button-down shirts in his school rotation. Having an odd number meant that whatever shirt he was wearing came up on a different day of the week every time he wore it. If it was on Monday the first time, it would be on a Tuesday two weeks later the second time, and so on. As far as he knew, none of his students had ever figured out his schedule. Rob knew, and gave him a fair amount of shit for it, but they gave each other a hard time about everything.

The pink and gray shirt was meant for this Tuesday, but Mike went to the next shirt in the rotation instead. It was solid black, which meant he didn’t even have to change his pants from the dark gray he already had on, even though that meant he’d have to wear the light gray pants with the pink shirt tomorrow. _Oh well. It’s okay to shake it up a little bit. I never wear the light gray pants with that shirt. But it will be fine._

Mike tucked his shirt into his pants, sliding on his belt and buckling it before he reached for a tie. He could already hear Rob panicking when he walked into the office wearing a tie. Having a tie on at school usually involved one of three things: district personnel walking the building, formal observations, or open house. He flipped his collar up and stepped back to the vanity, where Lexie was licking her left paw and watching him closely.

“Look, Lex, we match,” he said to the cat, skillfully knotting his tie into a Windsor knot before he flipped his collar back down, patted over his hair, and checked his beard. A long time ago he’d decided that a five o’clock shadow was not a great look on him, and ever since he’d had a full face of hair that he carefully kept at a certain length with his electric razor. As he did every night, he’d neatened the edges and lines of his facial hair before bed, and it looked up to par for seeing Chester again in the afternoon.

 _This is what my life has become. Worrying about how I look for a man whose kids I teach. And for what purpose? I can’t date him, even if he were interested._ Mike would be lying if he didn’t admit he’d felt _something_ between the two of them, but he figured it was just gratefulness on the part of the twins’ father. Mutual interest would be too good to be true - even if Chester weren’t off limits. 

_Why dress for him then? You’re just setting yourself up for disappointment,_ the little voice in Mike’s head mocked. He shook it off, but his shoulders slumped a little as he flipped off the bathroom lights and called for Lexie to follow him downstairs to make coffee. 

****

“What are you two whispering about back there?” Chester asked, watching his girls in the rearview mirror. They appeared to be having a very intense conversation as he drove them to school. 

Lily made a face at Chester in the mirror. “We were talking about Mr. Shinoda, Dad. And how we’re tired of staying after school with him.” She crossed her arms over her red sweatshirt and looked at her twin.

Chester glanced at Lila, who was nodding, though she looked less annoyed than her sister. “Lila-bug, what do you think? Are you tired of getting extra help? I’ve heard you practicing at home, sweetheart, you sound like you’re getting better.”

Lila looked at Lily, then hung her head. “It’s okay, I guess. I think it’s weird Mr. Shinoda plays flute. Flute is a girl’s instrument.” She looked ashamed of herself as he spoke, but Lily was nodding along proudly.

“I thought he was a French horn player,” Chester wondered aloud, trying to keep his focus on the road in front of him. After all, he was an insurance agent. Driving safely was practically in his job description. 

“He is, Dad,” Lily scoffed. “He just plays flute with us when he helps us. And I don’t think he’s very good at it.”

“Says you,” Chester interrupted. “Do you have a degree in music?” He frowned at Lily in the rearview mirror.

“Oh, God!” Lily exclaimed. “Mr. Shinoda says the same thing. _When you have a degree in music, you can tell me how to do my job!_ ” she mocked, and Lila giggled at her sister. 

“He does say that a lot,” Lila offered to Chester between laughs.

Chester sighed. “I hope you two aren’t causing him trouble after school. Like I told you a month ago, he seems like a nice man. And every time I come to pick you cup, he sounds very patient with you two. I think he really wants you to be successful. Why else would he give up his free time to help you both?” _Other than the fact that he was definitely giving me the eye that day. Too bad he’s the girls’ teacher. He seems like he could use a night out. Or lunch. Or coffee! I could ask him to get coffee, right? That’s not being weird. It wouldn’t be weird to ask him to coffee, it’s not like I’m inviting him over to the house._

“Dad!” Lily called impatiently, bringing Chester out of his thoughts.

“Sorry, sweetheart, what was that?”

“You missed the turn?” Lila said, a bit of worry in her voice. “Are you okay?”

Chester nodded his head as he looked to his left and changed lanes to make a u-turn. Lila was always the one who picked up on his mood changes. “Of course, Lila-bug. Just spaced out there for a minute. Thinking about a presentation I have today.” He mentally added that to the tally of lies he’d told his girls through the years and cringed. They were all for their own good, to protect them, that’s what he told himself.

“Well, you always say keep you eyes on the road and your head in the game when you’re behind the wheel,” Lila said seriously. 

“That’s right. Safety first,” Chester agreed. He kept his eyes on the road and tried to keep his thoughts off seeing Mike Shinoda again after work today. He tried not to look forward to the brief moments he got to interact with the one person he’d been thinking about since the moment they met a month ago. The one person he was sure wouldn’t even consider dating him until his girls were finished with band. 

****

“Hey, Mike! How’s the morning treating you!”

From inside the passenger door, Mike cringed at the sound of Dave Farrell’s always cheerful voice calling out to him from the teacher parking lot. It was as though the theater teacher took a special thrill in antagonizing him when he caught Mike outside a few mornings a week. He took a deep breath and backed out of the door with his coffee thermos in one hand and his laptop bag in the other. “Hello, Dave,” he said, his ever-present politeness kicking in despite the fact just looking at the theater teacher’s kind face made him want to hit something. 

“Would you look at that sunrise?” Dave swept his hand across the sky and smiled. The orange and pink clouds against the purple sky were God’s gift to the morning, and Dave Farrell said a quick prayer of thanks in his head. “Crazy how we don’t even get to see the sun this time of year, getting here so early and leaving so late,” Dave rambled cheerfully, still unaware after two years that Mike hated mornings and certainly didn’t give a fuck about the sunrise before he’d had even a drop of coffee. “The Lord knew what he was doing when he painted this sky for us this morning.” 

Mike listened to Dave inhale a huge breath of crisp winter air and forced himself not to scowl. He interpreted very literally the separation of church and state, and in his opinion, talking any sort of religion on school grounds not only made him uncomfortable, but felt wrong. With a nod in Dave’s direction, he started for the band hall door, his keys in his hand. Rob’s black Ford truck was parked in the usual spot to Mike’s right, but that didn’t mean he’d left the door open for his boss.

“Mind if I sneak in behind you, Mike?” Dave asked, like he did each morning he caught Mike in the parking lot. 

“I’ve never stopped you,” Mike responded, and mocked the laughter he knew he’d hear as Dave chuckled good-naturedly behind him. He opened the band hall door and held it for Dave, who playfully punched him on the arm as he walked inside. Mike followed him in, stopping to straighten a chair that was out of place, and heard Dave call good morning to Rob when he passed the office on his way out the door into the main hallway.

Rob was waiting as Mike shuffled into the office, a grin on his face. “I know how much you love Dave’s ‘blessed morning’ comments,” he started, his hands ready with air quotations, before he saw Mike’s necktie. “Fuck, Mike, are we being observed today?” He immediately took his feet off the counter and patted over his too long hair. “I knew I should have gotten a haircut.”

“Yeah, I told you that a month ago,” Mike said, dropping his bag in its place and setting his coffee on his desk. “But no, I just felt like looking nicer today.” He busied himself with pouring his coffee as Rob stopped fussing with his hair and looked piercingly at Mike. 

“Bullshit,” he said, trying to get a read on Mike’s face. “You hate wearing ties. What’s going on today that you need to wear a tie?” Rob looked at the shared dry-erase calendar on the wall, the old-school type that Mike insisted they use instead of sharing a calendar on iCal like people did these days. “It’s just a regular day. Nothing important going on this Tuesday. _Tuesday,_ ” he repeated slowly, narrowing his eyes as he looked at Mike. “Does this have anything to do with ‘the delectable Mr. Bennington?’” Rob teased, the obvious answer slapping him in the face.

“I never said ‘delectable’,” Mike grumbled, a faint blush tinting his cheeks. He’d been blushing far too much lately at any mention of Chester, and Rob was on to him.

“You might as well have,” Rob decided, tucking his hair behind his ear and observing Mike though his glasses. “Thinking he’s good looking is one thing, but dressing up for him? Don’t you think that’s a bit much? I mean, you know you can’t date him - even if he were into dudes.” 

Mike plopped down in his chair with a sigh. “I know that, Bourdie. He’s just nice to look at… and it’s been a while, you know?”

Rob nodded sympathetically. “I know. But that doesn’t mean you can hit on parents. You just need to get out more. Staying at home with Lexie isn’t doing much for your social life, much less your love life.” He picked up his little baggie of protein powder and dumped it in the red shaker bottle full of water. 

“Yeah,” Mike agreed absently, shifting papers around on his desk. “God, I hate that thing. The sound of it… ugh.” He threw the shaker bottle a glare and picked up an invoice from under a pile of practice records he still needed to grade. “Shit. I need to pay for this music. This invoice is almost thirty days old now.”

“Yeah, I’d say this little crush has gotten out of hand,” Rob agreed with himself as he pointed at the dangerously close to past-due invoice in his boss’ hand. “You never pay bills late. You’re spending so much time thinking about Mr. Hot Dad that you can’t do your job.”

“Whatever, Bourdie,” Mike mumbled, opening his desk drawer to locate a check request in his meticulously labeled files. “Things are getting done, and I don’t have a crush on Che… Mr. Bennington.” 

Rob watched Mike fill out the form for a minute before he stood up and grabbed his music from his desk. “Uh-huh. I’m gonna go teach my trumpets. God bless, they sound awful. Why don’t these kids practice?”

“Tell them to open their teeth and use more air,” Mike responded without looking up, and Rob left the office without saying anything. They’d been fighting the good fight with his trumpet section all year, and Mike’s advice wasn’t new. The thing about junior high kids was that you had to tell them things over and over and over until it finally sunk into their skulls.

 _Just like the twins,_ he thought as he stapled the invoice to the check request. _They’re already getting better, despite their best efforts to not do anything. I should tell their dad that this afternoon when he comes to get them. A compliment can go a long way._ Mike closed his eyes for a moment, a mental picture of Chester Bennington flashing through his mind. School hadn’t even started for the day, and he was already wishing it was over so he could see Chester again. 

_Okay, maybe I have a little crush on him,_ Mike conceded to himself as he stood up, gathering his things and his coffee to go teach his clarinet sectional. _Not that I’m gonna admit it to Bourdie. I’ll never hear the end of it._

“Mr. Shinoda?” Alice called as soon as he stepped out of the office. “I forgot my binder at home.” The curly headed seventh grader smiled charmingly at Mike, hoping he wouldn’t get too upset with her.

“Share with Morgan,” Mike replied. It was hard to be mad at his clarinet section. They were all decent players and worked hard, and they definitely tried not to disappoint him most days. “Make sure you get all the markings from him when you have your binder tomorrow.”

“I will,” Alice chirped happily, pleased with the outcome.

Mike couldn’t help but think that if it had been Lily or Lila without a binder, he would have sat them at the desk by the wall and made them complete a written assignment. He tried not to have favorites, and prided himself on treating every student equally, but the twins still got under his skin a little more than most of the girls. 

“Why are you so dressed up today, Mr. Shinoda?” Bailey asked as she adjusted her reed on her mouthpiece. “You look like it’s picture day.”

 _Junior high kids are so fuckin’ nosey._ “I just felt like wearing a tie today,” Mike said casually, taking a sip of his coffee as he looked at his seven top band clarinet students.

“My dad says ties suck,” Alice commented, scooting her chair over so she could see Morgan’s music better.

“Make sure that chair gets back in its place,” Mike said quickly. He hated it when they moved chairs out of place. It was one of a long list of reasons why when students didn’t have their music, he made them do written work.

“Oh! I have to leave at 8:15 to go to a theater meeting,” Morgan said, looking up at Mike before adjusting his music stand. “Mr. Farrell is giving out information for tryouts for the next play. It’s like a Wizard of Oz thing!” 

The other students looked at Morgan like he’d lost his mind before Mike said, “you’re not leaving sectionals for a theater meeting. You can get the info from him on the way to first period.” He wasn’t trying to be a jerk, but he knew Dave’s info was all in a stapled packet that he could just hand to the students. A meeting was entirely unnecessary, and one of the things that irritated him about the theater teacher. 

Morgan looked at Mike for a second before he looked back at his music. “Okay, I guess. I just wanted to see who else was trying out. Can I text Ella to tell me who all is in the meeting?”

“Hurry.” Mike flipped a few pages in his notebook while Morgan fired off the text, looking relieved that Mike hadn’t completely shut him down. 

The rest of Mike’s day was pretty much the same as his morning rehearsal. First it was both of his bassoon players, then a second band flute player, and then his best percussionist - all coming to him to ask about auditioning for the theater production. By the time sixth period rolled around, he was finished hearing about the Wizard of Oz and trying to be supportive of his students trying out for roles in the play. _If they try to skip rehearsal for theater, Dave and I are going to have to have a talk. I’m not dealing with missing kids when my rehearsals have been scheduled all year._

With all the drama of the day, it didn’t even shock him when Lily bounced in right before the tardy bell, a theater try-out packet in her hand. “Mr. Shinoda!” she called as she got her flute out of her locker. “I’m going to be Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz! And then I won’t be able to stay for flute tutorials because I’ll be _a star_!” Lily tossed her hair over her shoulder and beamed out at the rest of the class. All of the other students, including her sister, were looking between her and Mike and waiting for his reaction to her announcement.

“Have a seat, Miss Bennington,” Mike responded, rolling his eyes at her bid to be the center of attention. “You know, if Mr. Farrell actually gives the lead role to a sixth grader, you have my blessing to stop playing the flute, because _clearly_ , you would be an absolute star.” He watched as Lily seemed to take his sarcasm as a personal challenge.

“You watch, Mr. Shinoda. I’m going to be on _Broadway_ one day!” Lily plopped down into her chair and jammed her flute together without any attentiveness to the delicacy of the key work. 

“You know what, Miss Bennington?” Mike said, looking at her seriously. “If you make it to Broadway, you send me an invitation to your first show, and I’ll be there.” He shoved away the thought of seeing Chester at a Broadway show and looked out over his little crop of sixth graders. “That goes for any of you. If you make it big somewhere, someday, I want to know. Send me an email, find me on whatever new social media that’s out there. You guys have no idea what kind of amazing things you can do with your life right now. Dream big. Work hard. You don’t know what you could achieve.”

All of their shining eyes on him made Mike’s heart swell with pride. Some of them just needed someone to believe in them, and he always believed he could get more out of them than even they thought they were capable of… it was one of the reasons he’d started teaching in the first place. His inspirational moments were always an exciting way to start class, but today felt even better than usual, because Lily and Lila Bennington were both looking at him as though he had said something utterly profound. 

_Maybe I’m starting to get through to them,_ he thought. _Maybe today will be the day we make some actual progress after school._ Flashing his students an unusually bright smile, Mike straightened his tie and got busy teaching his sixth period class. He was so engrossed in being an inspiring teacher he didn’t realize until later that neither of the Bennington twins had even asked him to go to the bathroom.

****

“Okay. Let’s try that again. Look at your fingering chart. What is the difference between the fourth line D and the top space E?” Mike had all of his patience out in full force as he sat next to Lily - he was pretty sure based on her complaints that she was Lily, anyway - and coached the twins through the fingerings of the F scale. Again.

“It’s too hard!” Lily whined miserably, trying to look at the clock that hadn’t kept time in years. “When is our dad going to be here? I’m tired!” She dropped her flute to her lap and stared at the music in front of her.

Before Mike could sigh, Lila spoke up. “You just lift your right ring finger,” she said, squinting at the finger chart. “Oh! Well, that’s easy. Lily, it’s just one finger at a time.” Lila sat up a little straighter and held her flute out in front of her twin. “See?”

“That’s right!” Mike praised. “Why don’t you try it and see if it matches mine?” He held his flute to his lips and waited for Lila to match his posture. “One, two, breathe…” he counted her off and they started together. 

Lila played the scale with Mike, taking a breath between each note she played, but actually putting down all the right fingers while Lily watched them. When the finished, Lila’s face was beaming with excitement. “I did it! Oh, Lily, it’s not hard, I know you can do it!” Lila turned to her sister and showed her the finger pattern again.

“Maybe I just don’t want to!” Lily exclaimed, standing up and slamming her flute on the chair behind her, facing Lila with her hands on her hips. “I can’t believe you! You said this was stupid, too, now you’re in here doing everything he says!” Lily threw a glare at Mike and then back at her sister. “Band is stupid, you know. You’re stupid.”

“You just think that because you don’t understand it. I think it’s kinda fun now.” Lila looked at her flute and then at Lily. “Why don’t you just quit and go be in theater, Miss Priss?”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Mike said, holding his hand up. “You know, not everyone is talented in the same way. And, maybe it would be good for you both if you tried separate things. Lila, maybe your talent is in music, and maybe Lily’s in in theater.” He tried not to shudder as he heard himself encouraging one of his students to give a different elective a try. “There’s musicians on Broadway, too. Pit musicians. They provide the music for the plays.”

“If that’s so cool, why don’t _you_ do that?” Lily asked hatefully. “Or were you not good enough?”

Mike bit his tongue to keep from saying something nasty to his student. He’d tried to be kind to them both, even on their worst days, but this particular attack was a low blow.

The truth was, he’d always wanted to be a studio musician. He loved film music and in particular the French horn lines in most movie scores. It had been _his_ big dream - and then there was Brad. Marriage and settling down, and the idea of a family someday. A stable career was a must if children were going to enter their lives, and Mike had quietly put away his aspirations to build a life that ultimately made him think that maybe kids weren’t in the cards for him. Looking back, he wasn’t sure if he ended up not wanting kids because something told him things between him and Brad weren’t quite right, or if teaching had proved to him how tiring children could be. But the thing he did know was that he _was_ , in fact, good enough to play professionally, and he wasn’t going to let a sassy sixth grader act like she knew him.

“You’ve never heard me play my actual instrument,” Mike answered in place of all the other things he wanted to say to her. “Maybe you should.” He placed his flute on the instrument stand and stood up, stalking into the office for his gig bag. Without even looking to see if they were still arguing with each other, he took out his horn, screwed on the bell, and walked out into the band hall. “This is where hard work and practicing will get you someday.”

As Lily and Lila watched, Mike launched into the fast movement of a Mozart horn concerto he’d had memorized since high school. From there he played a few movie tunes - some meaty parts from Star Wars, then a lighter bit of Disney movie music. The last bit he played was a soaring melody from an orchestral excerpt he’d learned when he thought he’d be taking auditions out of college. By the time he was finished, both girls were looking at him with what looked like a new found respect, and Mike was about to say something a little sassy to Lily about the quality of his playing having nothing to do with his teaching.

He didn’t get a chance, though. Instead, a single round of applause echoed through the band hall, originating from behind Mike. He turned, ready to tell Rob to showcase his skills on the marimba, and froze. Rob wasn’t his audience. Chester Bennington was standing in the hallway that lead to the outside door, and Mike had no idea how long he’d been standing there.

“Dad!” Lily exclaimed, the quiet spell Mike’s playing had put on her broken. “Finally! I’m so ready to go home!”

Mike stared at Chester, the sound of his chuckle filtering through the room. He knew he should say something, but Lily was already on her way to launch herself into her father’s arms.

“How was the flute lesson?” Chester asked, kissing his daughter’s forehead. “Or did Mr. Shinoda just play the French horn for you the whole time?” He looked over the top of Lily’s head and caught Mike’s surprised eyes. _He looks absolutely delicious._

“I can play the F scale now,” Lila called from where she was seated in the front row, cleaning her flute before putting it in the case. “And he only played because Lily told him he must suck since he was teaching instead of performing.”

Mike felt his cheeks start to burn in embarrassment as Chester looked sternly down into Lily’s face. “Lily! You’re here to learn, not to criticize your teachers!”

“I didn’t say he sucked,” Lily defended, whirling around to give her twin the death glare. “We were talking about Broadway and how I’m going to be a star, and I just asked why he wasn’t playing on Broadway,” she explained in an innocent voice, leaving out a lot of critical information.

Chester sighed and looked at Mike. “Go get your flute and go out to the car. I want to talk to Mr. Shinoda for a minute. Alone,” he added, his voice dark. 

“I didn’t say he sucked,” Lily whined as she reluctantly followed directions. She didn’t look at her dad or Mike as she disassembled her flute and put it in the case without cleaning it. “Come on, let’s go,” he said to her sister, flipping her hair over her shoulder and brushing past Chester without saying goodbye to Mike.

On her way down the hall, Lila stopped to give Chester a hug, then turned to Mike with a wave. “Bye, Mr. Shinoda. Thanks for helping us today. I’m going to go home and practice those new notes, like you said.”

“That’s awesome, Lila,” Mike affirmed, tucking his French horn under his arm as he walked toward them. “I can’t wait to hear it tomorrow.” He watched her follow her sister down the hallway, and then he was alone with Chester. He tried not to be obvious as he looked at Chester, who was wearing the same white dress shirt and navy blue dress pants he had on every time he came to pick up the twins. He tried not to imagine him in something other than his work uniform. Something like a form fitting black t-shirt and jeans, slung low on his slender hips, with a studded belt and laced up boots…

“Mr. Shinoda?” Chester said, pulling Mike out of his daydream. “How are they doing? It’s been a month. I hear Lila practicing at home, and it sounds like it’s better, but I have no idea what I’m listening for.” His dark eyes caught Mike’s through the lenses of his black framed glasses. 

“Right,” Mike said, his heart pounding and the blood in his cheeks catching fire. “She’s really coming along. Lily, though, I don’t know if band is for her. She was really upset when Lila was getting it and she wasn’t. That’s what lead to this.” He pointed at the horn under his arm. “I was trying to get her to understand that a little bit more effort now might have a big payoff later.” He unconsciously licked his lips as he looked at Chester.

The movement of Mike’s tongue wasn’t lost on Chester, and he felt his stomach turn a little with suppressed desire. He ignored it and focused on the conversation he was having about his daughter. _My daughter. I’m here to help her, not look at her band teacher’s perfectly full bottom lip. Nope. Can’t look at it._ “She thinks everything is too hard if she actually has to try,” Chester sighed, looking away from Mike’s mouth and fidgeting with the button on his right cuff. Mike tried not to watch his fingers as the pulled the button loose and started to roll up his sleeve. “Sorry,” Chester chuckled softly. “I can only tolerate this shirt for so long. It’s like being in a straight jacket. I have no idea how you wear a tie all day.”

Mike’s eyes flashed up to meet Chester’s, elated that the object of his crush had noticed his attire. “You get used to it after a while,” he tried to say casually with a half shrug, as though he wore a tie every day.

“I suppose. Anyway,” Chester said, watching Mike watching him roll up his sleeve, “it sounds like I need to talk to Lily about her attitude. I’m sure she can work harder. I think she just doesn’t like Lila showing her up.” He finished one sleeve and went to roll up the other. “Sibling rivalry, it’s bad with those two.” 

“I see,” Mike offered, though he was completely preoccupied with the sudden appearance of the flame tattoos encircling Chester’s wrists. Thoughts of the twins were far away and he found himself actually saying out loud, “wow, those are really beautiful.” _Oh my God, Mike, shut up!!_ The heat on his cheeks was almost unbearable.

Chester cocked an eyebrow and tilted his head as he studied Mike, at the way his cheeks were flushed and he was staring at his favorite tattoos. “Oh, these?” he said, lifting his wrists for Mike to get a closer look. “Thanks. I love them. But my stupid job makes me keep them covered.”

“Yeah, we can’t have visible tattoos either,” Mike heard himself saying. _Oh God, oh, God! He would look amazing in a black t-shirt with those arms exposed. I wonder if he has any others._

As though Chester were reading Mike’s mind, he continued, “I’ve always had an affinity for body art. Keeping all of them covered for work is such a drag.” He gestured vaguely around his upper body without saying anything more.

Mike looked up, suddenly aware that he’d been staring. “I… um… yeah, I bet that’s awful,” he managed to get out, knowing he needed to steer the conversation back to safer ground. He cleared his throat. “So, Mr. Bennington, I think Lila is doing great. If you’ll talk to Lily, maybe encourage her a bit more, we might start to see some progress there, too.”

Chester regarded Mike thoughtfully. _I’m going to do it. Coffee. It’s not weird. It’s just coffee. Not a date._ “I do appreciate what you’re doing for them,” he offered. “I wish there was something I could do to compensate you for your time-”

“Oh no,” Mike said quickly, “I couldn’t. Helping them is part of my job. I’m happy to do it.” 

“Well, maybe you wouldn’t object to a cup of coffee or something, sometime?” Chester said boldly, locking his eyes on Mike. “I’d love to treat you some time. It’s the least I could do. I don’t know how you can put up with all that sass.” He smiled charmingly at Mike, pushing up his rolled up sleeves and showing off his flames a little more. 

_Is he asking me out?_ Mike thought instantly, before his mind told him to stop being stupid. No matter how attracted he was to Chester Bennington, the fact remained that he was the father of two of his students, and there was absolutely no evidence that pointed to Chester being interested in him like that! “I, well… you see,” he started, ready to make excuses why he couldn’t see Chester away from the school. It was forbidden… and Mike was a rule follower. No dating parents. 

“Mr. Shinoda… Mike?” Chester asked, a smile playing around his lips. “Do you mind if I call you Mike?” He watched as Mike numbly shook his head, the surprise rolling across his face. “A cup of coffee. On a Saturday morning. The girls tell me how much you love coffee. They’ll be at their mom’s this weekend, so it would be perfect opportunity to thank you for the extra bit of time you’ve spent with them. It’s not a big thing,” Chester added.

Mike let out the breath he’d been holding. _He’s right. It’s just a cup of coffee. On a Saturday morning. It’s not a date. Just coffee. Why would you even think he meant it the way you took it. He’s not asking you out._ “Sure, okay,” he said quickly, before he could change his mind. “How’s ten o’clock, at the Momentum cafe over on First?”

“Sounds like a date,” Chester replied with a wink, smirking at the dumbfounded look his response brought to Mike Shinoda’s face. “Hey, thanks again for putting up with them. I’ll talk with Lily tonight, and we can discuss it over your favorite drink Saturday. I’ve never been there, so you’ll have to tell me what’s good.” 

As if on cue, Lily stuck her head in through the outside door of the band hall. “Daaaadddd!” she called, impatience all over her tone. “Let’s go!!”

Chester rolled his eyes as he turned away from Mike. “I’m coming, sweetheart!” he called before he looked over his shoulder at Mike one last time. At his black dress shirt still neatly tucked into his gray pants, even at the end of a long work day. At his dark hair and deep eyes that looked a little bewildered. “I’ll see you Saturday… Mike.”

It took several seconds for a coherent thought to come to Mike’s head. “I won’t miss it,” he promised, then immediately chastised himself for sounding eager. Luckily, Chester was already outside, the door closing softly behind him.

****  
TBC


	4. The Non-Date Coffee Date

Mike typed the last grade into his grade book and twisted his wrist to look at his watch. Lexie looked back at him, along with a time stamp that told him there were exactly eighteen minutes until four o’clock. _So seventeen minutes until the bell rings. I wonder if they are going to fix that or if it’s going to stay off for the rest of the year. I should send Teresa an email about it._

“Did you see this email about the play?” Rob asked, his back to Mike as he stared at his computer screen. He was eating an apple - loudly - and Mike wanted to cross the office and swat it out of his hand.

“Fuck. No. Do I want to open it? It’s Friday afternoon. It’s almost time to go. If it’s going to piss me off all weekend, I’d rather save it for Monday.” He was already preoccupied with thoughts of his non-date coffee date the next morning. Being irritated at Dave and having half his mind occupied with thoughts of how to get rid of the annoying theater teacher wouldn’t leave a lot of room to navigate small talk. Mike was not good at small talk, and he knew he needed every ounce of his brain power to not sound like a bumbling idiot.

Rob spun around his his chair, the offending apple in his left hand. “I don’t think it will piss you off. I mean, if it were any other kid, it might, but-”

Mike held up his hand and glared at the apple. “Just tell me who it is. Who’s in the damn play? Is it Bryce? Morgan? I swear, those boys are going to be the death of me,” he complained, thinking of his best percussionist and his favorite clarinetist. “I need Bryce to figure out he can’t be good at everything. Something’s gotta give. And it’s not gonna be band.”

An amused smile came over Rob’s lips as he thought about whether to drag the big reveal out to annoy Mike, or just tell him and get it over with. His boss solved the dilemma for him. 

“I swear, Bourdie, just tell me, so I don’t have to open my damn email again. My computer hates me. I always have to enter my password twice.” 

“That’s because you enter it too fast. And it’s Lily Bennington,” Rob informed him. “You know, the one you said could quit band if she got the lead in the play?” His grin was huge as he watched Mike sputter.

“She didn’t,” Mike breathed, his eyes huge. “Are you serious? Dave gave the lead to a sixth grader?!” His voice was elevated, and he knew it, but it was practically unheard of for a sixth grader to beat all the seventh and eighth graders who tried out for the lead role. “Are you saying she’s actually good?” 

Rob shrugged, taking another bite out of his apple. “Looks that way. Now the real question is - are you really gonna follow through and let her quit?”

Nobody quit band halfway through the school year, much less halfway through a semester. Mike Shinoda was well known for expecting kids and parents to follow through with the commitment they made to band at the start of the year. Quitting band mid-year wasn’t even a question parents tried to ask any more, but Mike had a feeling, since he’d let Lily get under his skin, causing him to open his big mouth in front of the whole class, that the subject might come up. _Over coffee. With Chester. Because we’ll be discussing the kids and school because it’s not a date._

“I don’t know, damn it. I said I would in front of the whole class.” Mike reached for his coffee cup and scowled at it when he saw it was empty. “If I let her go, it opens the door for any other kid to just come and go as they please. And that’s not how this band program works.” 

Rob nodded his head, stretching his long legs out in front of him and crossing them at the ankles, settling in for what was sure to be a long, Shinodaesque rant about integrity and commitment. Mike was shaking his head, getting ready to justify his position, when the band hall door opened, and Jason strolled into the office.

“Hey, bro,” Jason greeted Mike with a cheesy grin, well aware that his brother hated it when he referred to him as ‘bro’ at school. “Rob,” he acknowledged, glancing his direction. “I need your money for the baby shower,” he said, holding out an envelope in front of him with both Mike and Rob’s names still showing among the many that had already been crossed off.

Mike rolled his eyes. “Who’s having a baby now? Didn’t we just have a shower for Katie?” 

“Seriously, Mike? You don’t pay attention to anything anyone tells you if it’s not about band, do you? It’s Dave. His wife is pregnant again.” Jason looked down at the collection envelope. “You two are the last in our department I need to collect from so I can turn it in to Teresa and be done with it.” The principal’s secretary was waiting on the collection to start planning the shower, and Jason didn’t want his department to be the last to turn in the money.

“I thought giving was optional,” Mike grumbled as Rob held out a five dollar bill. “And aren’t showers supposed to be for first time parents? Traditionally, a baby shower is given to prepare new parents-”

“You know this how?” Rob interrupted. “You have zero kids, Mike. Why do you know anything about baby showers?”

“Because I look up the rules, trying to get out of attending gratuitous social events around here.” Mike shifted in his crooked chair to pull his wallet from the back pocket of his Friday jeans. Friday jeans days were the best - except for when his brother the extortionist showed up wanting money. “Here.” He tossed the five at Jason, missing his hand completely.

“Well, thanks,” Jason said sarcastically as he bent over to pick up the money. He stuffed the bill in his envelope and scratched Mike’s name off with a black sharpie he picked up off the band director’s desk. Mike watched the marker with hawk-like eyes until Jason returned it to his cup holder.

“Sure thing, _bro,_ ” Mike answered back sweetly, chuckling at the dark look that crossed Jason’s face.

“By the way, did you hear?” Jason said, his voice back to its normal cheerful timbre. “Your favorite, Lily Bennington, she’s going to be Dorothy in the play.”

“Yeah, we were just discussing that,” Rob chimed in, standing up and starting to put all of his things in his backpack to leave for the weekend.

“How are things going with them, after your little parent meeting?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow at Mike.

“Yeah, Mike, how _are_ the twins? How’s Mr. Bennington?” 

Mike threw Rob a death glare and watched as his assistant ducked his head with a wide smile across his face. He was still giving Mike shit about wearing a tie on Tuesday, which was exactly why Mike hadn’t breathed a word about his non-date coffee date in the morning. “Everyone is doing just great,” Mike answered, forcing himself not to throw a drum stick at Rob’s head.

“Good that you got that sorted out,” Jason teased. “I’d hate to have to sit in a parent-teacher conference with you. You’re such a hard ass.”

“Rumor has it Mr. Bennington gave Mike a run for his money.” Rob just couldn’t keep his mouth shut, and as Jason turned an incredulous look toward his brother, Rob stuck his tongue out at Mike from behind Jason’s back.

“There are no rumors,” Mike insisted, calculating in his head how long it would take him to suffocate Rob with the box of kleenex between their desks. “Everyone is fine. The girls are passing band and the dad is really understanding.” He cleared his throat and stood up, straightening his McArthur Band hoodie and reaching for his coffee thermos. “Tell Teresa I won’t be able to make it to the shower. I have rehearsal,” he said to Jason as he packed up his things.

With a snort, Jason replied, “nobody expected you to actually be there, Mike. They just want your money.” He paused and looked around the office. “Well, you two have a good weekend. Oh, and don’t forget, Mike, you promised mom you’d come by for dinner on Sunday. You know your little nieces want to see you, too.” Jason’s authoritative school voice had changed into something a little more pleading, and Mike saw Rob discreetly leave the office to give them a moment.

Mike sighed. “I know. I know, Jay. Maybe I’ll feel up to it this week.” He tugged on his ear as he tried to think of something else to say.

“We’re all just worried about you, Mike. All you do is get up and come to work. Not that it’s a bad thing, but there’s more to life than work…” Jason’s voice dropped a little, as though they were trying to keep secrets from Rob. “You’re still young, you know. Just because _he_ left doesn’t mean this band program is all you have left. It’s just work.”

 _Just work._ “It’s not always about him, Jay.” _Except it usually is… but maybe I’ll be able to go this week. Maybe I’ll feel better, just getting out tomorrow morning. Even if it’s not a date, it’s social. I need to be more social._ Mike looked up, his eyes catching his brother’s of the exact same shade. “I’ll be there. Tell the girls that Uncle Mike will be there.”

Jason nodded, his posture changing from one of tension to relief. “If you’re letting me tell the girls, I know you’ll be there. Mom will be so happy, Mike.” He waved the collection envelope in his hand. “I’ve got to get this up front before the bell rings. I’ll see you Sunday, okay?”

“Yep.” Mike looked out the office windows. Rob was straightening the chairs in the setup, placing the back legs of each one on the black velcro line on the floor. “Bourdie!” he called, watching his colleague’s head snap up. “Let the kids do that. Turn on the tv for busses and let’s finish up in here, so when it hits 4:15, we’re out!” 

“Got it!” Rob called back. With a good six inches on Mike, it was easy for him to turn the screen on from the floor. The remote had been lost years ago after Mike refused to buy batteries for it with his own money, and turning the tv on to show which busses had arrived was Rob’s official end of the day job. He stepped back into the office to grab his phone from his desk before he had to stand in the band hall and monitor the end of the day madhouse that was two hundred and fifty kids all trying to get their instruments at once and make it outside before their bus left the ramp. 

“No band this weekend,” Rob commented as he turned off his computer. “You got any plans? Other than dinner Sunday?”

“You know me… running, coffee… that’s about it.” Mike wasn’t exactly lying by leaving out the little detail that he was meeting Chester Bennington for coffee, but he still felt guilty. He and Rob told each other everything, to the point of oversharing, but something about not mentioning his non-date coffee date made it a little bit more exciting. 

“Well, have fun, I guess. I’ll be out of pocket, taking a little camping trip with some friends from college this weekend. No reception.” Rob waved his phone at Mike.

“Oh, I remember you mentioning that,” Mike said. “Well, you guys have a good time. I’ll be snuggling with Lexie and drinking hot coffee while you’re freezing your ass off.”

“You’re always welcome to join us,” Rob offered, same as he had every time before, and Mike declined with a shake of his head, as always.

“Maybe next time,” Mike added right as the final bell rang. There were only fifteen minutes left between him and the weekend, and less than twenty-four hours before he would see Chester Bennington again.

*****

Saturday mornings without band were a rare treat. The absence of work meant Mike allowed himself to sleep in until seven before getting up to run his daily six miles. Lexie also took full advantage of the weekend, her furry backside snuggled against Mike’s spine, the two of them sharing warmth until he got out of bed, tucking the blankets gently around her soft body. 

When he walked through the bedroom on the way to shower after his run, Lexie’s small black and white head poked up from the nest she’d made in the sheets, and Mike laughed. “Lex, it’s time to get up. As soon as I shower, I’m making that bed, whether you’re still in it or not.”

Turning the shower knob to a lukewarm temperature, Mike shed his sweaty running clothes on the side of the deep bathtub in the corner and couldn’t help but glance in the mirror before he stepped underneath the water falling from his rain-spa shower head. He fought with himself, with the negative thoughts that Brad’s leaving had left him with. _Why even bother. If it wasn’t enough to keep him, why would it be good enough for anyone else?_ His appearance had almost become an obsession, his self-deprecating thoughts almost incapacitating at times. 

While he washed his hair, using a dime-sized drop of his coconut and agave shampoo, he mentally worked his way through the available options of casual clothing he could wear to his non-date coffee date. Without the comfort of his eleven dress shirt routine to cling to, insecurity was threatening to overtake him, but he realized mid-shampoo that he had no way to cancel on Chester. _We don’t have each other’s numbers, because it’s not a date. So if I don’t show up, I’ll just look rude. It would be so wrong to not go. I wish I could ask Rob what to wear. But he’d freak. He’d say it was a date. It’s not a date._

Still, Mike took extra care with his body wash in all the places he would have if it _were_ a date, and when he stepped out of the shower, Lexie was waiting for him at the sink. They went through their morning sink routine before Mike dropped the towel from his waist, stepped into a pair of navy blue boxer briefs, and headed into the closet. 

After a long debate, a black and white striped hoodie caught his eye, and he reached out to grab the arm of the pullover sweatshirt, rubbing the soft material between his fingers. _This is fine. It’s comfortable. It looks okay on me, and it doesn’t look like I’m trying too hard. I don’t want to look like I’m dressing up for him. This is fine with those jeans Rob hates. The ones with the rips in the knees._

Mike dressed quickly, grabbing a pair of hightop black Vans along with his socks. Lexie had disappeared while he was selecting his wardrobe for the day, and he dropped his shoes on the carpet so he could make the bed. Once everything was in order, sheets and blankets straight and pillow fluffed, he slid his phone into his front pocket and sent a hand through his hair. He didn’t usually put any product in it on the weekend, but something told him he shouldn’t wear a hat to his non-date coffee date. With a sigh, he went back into the bathroom, running a comb through his black hair before giving it a quick once-over with some gel. He smiled wide, checking his teeth in the mirror. Satisfied to see them white and straight, he flipped off the bathroom light and grabbed his shoes from the floor before heading downstairs. He had the perfect amount of time left to eat a bowl of cereal before he left the house. 

About the time his feet hit the bottom step, the butterflies in his stomach woke up and demanded he take notice. He felt a little bit queasy, almost deciding against breakfast due to his nerves. _This is ridiculous. I’m a grown-ass man. And this is not a date. It’s coffee. With a parent of two of my students._ Mike admonished himself firmly in his head and reminded himself with every bite of his frosted shredded wheat that, not only was Chester Bennington parent, he’d been married to a woman. _So that spark you felt was only in your head._

Still, he was anticipating seeing Chester again more than he’d looked forward to anything in months. On the short drive over to Momentum he tried to think of interesting things to talk about, questions he could ask to get to know Chester better, but it didn’t take him long to realize how out of practice he was at simply chatting someone up without being able to fall back on the safety net of school conversation. _Bourdie is right. Staying home with Lexie isn’t doing much for my social life._

Without thinking, he felt for his wedding ring with his thumb, a habit he’d had for years and still hadn’t broken even though it had been months since he’d worn it. The light tan line he’d once had was completely gone, and there was no evidence that there had ever been anything solid blocking his skin from the sun. Even when he and Brad had been married, they hadn’t had much of a social life - only a handful of mutual friends - and they spent most of their time together at home. _Until he stopped coming home. Ugh. Why am I thinking about that again? He’d not coming back, and even if he did, I wouldn’t want him anymore. Not after what he’s done._

Mike pulled his sensible Toyota Camry into a parking spot, glancing in the rearview mirror before he stepped out of the car. He had exactly two minutes to cross the parking lot and be perfectly on time, and he couldn’t hold back the excited bit of a smile that crossed his face at the idea that Chester could already be there, waiting. _I do hope he’s the type to show up on time. It would really ruin things if he were one of those people who is always late. That is my number one pet peeve._ With a deep breath to calm his nerves, Mike walked up to the front door of his favorite coffee place to find out if his non-date coffee date was punctual or not.

Chester was waiting for him just inside the door, and Mike felt his heart flutter when their eyes met, Chester’s toffee brown eyes and bright smile welcoming. “Mike! Right on time! How’s Saturday treating you so far?” 

“It’s been fine, how about yours?” Mike returned the greeting as warmly as he could manage, his brain clicking along one hundred miles per hour as he took in every detail of Chester’s weekend attire. The standard issue white button down and dark blue slacks were long gone. In their place was a pair of snug fitting black jeans and a long-sleeved, dark red, v-neck t-shirt with the sleeves pushed up past the flame tattoos Mike had recently admired. Instead of solid black plugs in his ears, Chester wore black and silver gauges, and Mike couldn’t imagine what size they must be for him to be able to see clear through Chester’s earlobe to the other side. He tried to take in all in quickly, all the way down to the black lace-up combats Chester was wearing, but he knew his once-over hadn’t been missed as soon as his eyes caught up with Chester’s again.

“Would it be weird if I said I’d been waiting for this morning at ten o’clock since Tuesday?” Chester asked with a smile, and Mike felt his cheeks blush a warm shade of pink. 

The butterflies in his stomach were fighting each other as Mike found himself saying, “not at all.” _Wow. Don’t stare, don’t stare._ “So, um… you said Tuesday you’d never been here?” Mike struggled to keep the nervous excitement from his voice as he looked at Chester.

“No, I haven’t. I do admit to looking at the pastries while I was waiting.” Chester saw the flash of panic in Mike’s eyes and rushed on. “Oh! I wasn’t waiting long. I’m always early. Everywhere. You weren’t late.” _I wanted to be sure I could watch you walk in, Mike Shinoda. And you look nothing like the hard-ass band director my girls claim you are. You look perfectly laid back and… normal. God, I hope you’re normal._ Chester smirked to himself before he got his thoughts under control. “Those almond danishes look amazing.” He nodded his head toward the bakery display.

“Oh, those are really nice with the toffee latte,” Mike said immediately. “If you’re into lattes. I prefer my coffee black, but every once in a while I splurge a little and get a non-fat latte.” Mentally he told himself to stop babbling, but words kept coming out of his mouth. “How do you take your coffee?”

“Usually black,” Chester answered, an amused smile on his face. He held his hand out toward the counter. “You order the drinks, but I want an almond danish. And you get whatever you want to go with your coffee.” 

Mike nodded as he stepped forward, his heart racing as Chester hovered at his elbow. Automatically he ordered two black Americanos and two almond danishes, and as he reached for his wallet, he felt Chester’s hand on his arm.

“No, I’ve got it. Remember? My treat for being such a great teacher to my girls.” Chester smiled and handed the barista a twenty, making small talk with the cheerful young man behind the counter.

 _Right. For being such a great teacher. You’ve got to calm down. It’s not a date._ Mike blew out a quiet breath as Chester took his change, dropping all the coins and a dollar into the tip jar. He turned his head to look around the cafe before he said, “that’s my table, over there by the window,” pointing at a small round table with two plush purple arm chairs on either side of it. 

Chester raised an eyebrow. “Your table? You always sit there?” There was a hint of teasing in his voice as he tried to determine what was so special about Mike’s spot. 

“It’s the best place,” Mike insisted. “I can see the counter, the door, and most of the room. The chairs are soft. There’s nobody behind me, and I have a great view out the window. It’s the only logical place to sit in a room this size.” He flashed Chester a smile as he weaved his way around the other tables. “Come on.”

“You know, the girls tell me you are the most structured teacher they have. I think I’m starting to think that maybe by structured, they mean routined.” Chester sat down across from Mike, leaning back into the cushions. 

Mike reached to place his iPhone and wallet on the table between them, looking up at Chester from under his thick, dark lashes. “Are you saying they find me boring?” he asked, straight-faced.

“Are you boring?” Chester tossed back, raising his eyebrow again. “You don’t seem boring to me.” He glanced at the barista, who was already disappearing after their coffees and danishes were wordlessly placed on the table. “Are they always so… personable?” he asked.

Mike couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of his chest. “It’s one of the things they know about me here. I’m not a big talker. Sara respects that.”

“Sara? You’re on a first name basis with the people that work here? That’s cute.” Chester immediately picked up the small plate with the almond danish on it and took a bite. “Oh, fuck yeah, that’s good,” he moaned, shaking his body side to side in the chair in celebration. 

_How cute is that? He’s dancing over a danish._ Mike smiled indulgently, feeling his nerves relax a little. “I’m glad you like it. This is my favorite coffee place by far. I love little independent shops so much more than chain places. You can taste the love in their drinks.” 

“Yes!” Chester took another bite of his danish and pointed the pastry at Mike. “I’m a fan of independent places, too. My ex loves Starbucks. I could never get her to understand she was paying for a label instead of good coffee. I’ll pay for good coffee, it’s worth it. But Starbucks always tastes burnt to me.”

Mike tried not to react negatively to the mention of Talinda Bennington, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to bring up Brad. “Some people just don’t get it,” was all he said, picking up his mug and leaning back in his chair to blow gently over the top of the steaming liquid. “Kinda like how some people can never be on time, and don’t see a problem with it. It’s, like-”

“Yeah, I hate that, it’s totally-” Chester interrupted.

“My number one pet peeve,” they both finished, then grinned at each other. 

“Right. That,” Mike said, hiding his smile behind his mug as he took a sip of the dark brew. A beat of silence passed before Chester chuckled out loud, causing Mike to ask, “what?”

“I’m just thinking about how relaxed you look. I so didn’t picture you in a hoodie. The way the girls talk, you’re like a robot or something. And as far as I know, robots don’t usually have good fashion sense.” Chester scanned his eyes over Mike’s outfit again and watched as the band director squirmed adorably under his gaze.

“That’s what I tell the kids. I’m a robot. No need for them to think otherwise. That’s when they start acting crazy.” Mike took a deep breath, then asked, “so, I heard Lily got the lead in the play?”

“Yeah, she’s pretty stoked. I think Lila’s a little relieved, too. She mentioned it would be good for them to have different interests, that they didn’t always have to do the same things. I think she’s growing up a little.” Chester passed a hand over his curls and then cupped his hand around his neck. “I think she’s a little tired of Lily.”

 _Me too,_ Mike thought, but there was no way he’d say that to her father. “I told them Tuesday it was okay for them to be interested in different things. It must be hard to be a twin.”

Chester nodded. “They definitely have their moments. They were so much easier when they were younger,” he added, thinking about his baby girls and their dark curly pigtails before he laughed again. “Okay, that’s a lie. From about three to six, they were easier. Having two babies at once was definitely an experience.”

“What were they like? When they were younger?” Mike asked curiously. “Was Lily always the… stronger one?”

“You mean, the bossy one? It’s okay to call it like it is, Mike. I know she’s a handful.” Chester set his empty danish plate on the table and picked up his coffee, crossing one ankle over his knee. “I’ve always thought that Lily was more like Tal, and Lila more like me. Lily is quick tempered and high strung, and she’s been like that since birth. Lila is more intuitive. Empathetic. She reads me like a book. Lila was the reason I knew her mother and I needed to split.” He rested his gaze on Mike’s surprised face and shrugged.

“Divorce is always hard on kids. I see that so much,” Mike offered. “I’m sure you both did what you could to make it easier on the girls.” 

“We never really had a marriage anyway. I love my girls, Mike, but they definitely weren’t part of my life plan at twenty-one.”

 _So he’s thirty-three. Just a year older than me._ “How long had you been married when you found out you were having twins?” Mike asked innocently, sipping his coffee.

Chester pressed his lips together as he considered how much he wanted to reveal, deciding that admitting his twins were the result of a one-night stand was too much for a first date. “We weren’t.”

“Oh. Oh! I’m sorry,” Mike said quickly, shaking his head. 

“No worries. We made it work. Got married, Talinda finished her undergrad and went to law school while I stayed with the girls. By the time they were school age, we knew it just wasn’t working for us anymore, but we’re on good terms. Friends. So that’s good for Lily and Lila.” Chester drew his index finger around the rim of his coffee cup in slow circles. “How about you, Mike? Any kids?” He was genuinely interested in the story of Mike Shinoda.

“No,” Mike sighed, as though it were a heavy topic of conversation. “My, um, ex and I didn’t see eye-to-eye on the whole ‘kids thing.’” He shifted in his seat and looked away from Chester’s piercing gaze. “I have a cat, though, so I know all about quick tempered and high strung.” The reward for his joke was a hearty laugh from his companion, and Mike grinned again. _He’s got a great laugh. It makes me laugh. Wow, I wish this could turn into something more. He’s interesting. And so gorgeous._

“What’s the cat’s name?” Chester asked.

“Lexie. She’s got a ton of nicknames, though. I’m surprised she ever comes when I call her. She’s got all the typical cat-sass.”

“Much like a pre-teen girl. I don’t know how you do it all day, Mike. All those middle school kids. They’re crazy at this age.” Chester sipped his coffee, dismayed to see it was already half gone. He wasn’t ready to go home. 

“Oh, I love it. They’re so great at this age. Old enough to do things independently, but not so old they don’t want to get along with their teacher. They still want us to like them. And working with Rob - Mr. Bourdon - helps. We’re great friends. Been working together for six years now,” Mike explained. “I wouldn’t trade it. Well, unless I was playing for a movie studio. I’d love to do that.”

“Was that the big dream?” Chester cocked his head to the side and studied Mike a little more. His soft looking facial hair, his big brown eyes with the dark lashes, the curve of his bottom lip, the mole above his right ear. Chester wanted to ask him to dinner, but he knew he had to tread carefully. Dating his kids’ teacher was probably not the smartest thing he could do, but Mike Shinoda was downright irresistible, and becoming more so with every syllable that fell from his perfect lips.

“Yeah…” Mike’s voice faded off for a moment as he thought about how he’d left behind dreams of playing professionally and entered into teaching instead. “I always thought I’d perform when I was in school. I took a film music course in college and completely fell in love with the idea of writing and performing movie scores. It just didn’t work out… the industry was struggling a bit when I graduated, and Brad wanted the house and white-picket fence life. Teaching wasn’t my first choice, but I do really enjoy it. I don’t know if I’d give it up at this point.” Mike was so far into his musings he wasn’t even aware he’d said Brad’s name out loud.

But Chester heard it, his ears picking up Mike’s male companion’s name loud and clear, and an excited cheer rose inside him. _I was right! He’s got an ex-husband! So there’s a chance. There’s actually a chance that he’s attracted to me, too._ “I can tell you love it,” Chester affirmed. “Lila has really taken to you.”

“Has she? That’s awesome!” Mike cheered. “She’s really doing a great job. I’m enjoying watching her progress.” He thought about their last session, and her excitement over getting things right, and a little bit of pride swelled in his heart. He loved it when things finally clicked for his students. 

There was another lull in the conversation, this one more comfortable as both men tried to feel out where to go next. Mike was indecisive, but Chester had started to make his mind up the second he’d heard Brad’s name. He knew he was going to have to be a little forward if he was to get what he wanted.

“So, Mike,” he started, setting down his now empty coffee mug. “I’m sure you know that I didn’t just ask you to coffee to thank you for tutoring my girls.” He reached up and started to toy with one of his gauges, displaying the first bit of nervousness he’d felt all morning. Mike’s dark eyes were on his fingers, watching him flip the bottom of his earlobe back and forth. 

Mike felt his pulse quicken. He knew if Chester asked him out on a real date, he had to say no. _Even though I’d love to get to know him better. I already feel comfortable around him… he makes me laugh. It’s been so long since I talked with someone other that Rob like this._ “Oh?” was all he managed to say, and he kicked himself for the way it came out of his mouth sounding coy. He wasn’t trying to lead Chester on; he knew he couldn’t date the delicious man across from him.

Chester smiled slyly, his tongue coming out to graze slowly over his bottom lip. “I’d like to get to know you better. And not just as the girl’s teacher. Maybe _instead_ of knowing you as their teacher. You know how hard it is to meet people... like us.”

Mike’s fingers gripped his coffee cup tightly. _I should stop him. I should tell him we can’t get to know each other. I shouldn’t have agreed to this coffee date. It’s not a date! But it is a date!_ “I… well, yeah. I know what you mean,” Mike squeaked out, his thoughts and his words not matching at all. “This has been great this morning. I usually drink my coffee alone.” _God, shut up, Mike! You sound pathetic!_

There was a softening around Chester’s eyes as he looked at Mike. He could read the embarrassment on the other man’s face at his honest admission, and it only made the band director look that much more appealing. Since he hadn’t been stopped yet, he decided to press on. “I hope I’m not wrong, Mike… but I feel like there’s a little spark between us. And not just the static electricity kind,” he chuckled, thinking of their first handshake.

 _You’re not wrong. You’re not wrong! I’ve been thinking about you constantly since that afternoon! Thinking about what you look like under those clothes and what your hair would feel like in my hands, and whether you prefer being on top or on bottom and I CAN’T DO THIS!_ “You’re not wrong,” he said instead, allowing himself to be lost in the warmth of Chester’s eyes. “Not at all. I think we _should_ get to know each other better.” _What did you just say? What?!_

Chester’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Really? I mean, I thought you’d tell me no, with my kids being in your class and everything, I wasn’t expecting you to say yes!”

Mike instantly felt as though he’d fucked up the unwritten Dating Rulebook. He hadn’t played hard enough to get - but wasn’t he past that? He was in his thirties. Why should he have to play games anymore? They were adults, who found each other attractive. Mike knew that Chester Bennington was untouchable as long as Lily and Lila were in his class, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t get to know each other. “Well, I’m saying yes to getting to know you better, Chester. But… I am the teacher of record for your girls, and until that changes…”

He meant to say they could only be friends. The words were on the tip of his tongue, and the sensible, rule-following part of Mike Shinoda was ready to say them. But as he looked into Chester’s warm honey eyes, as he watched the sparkle start to dim just a little at what he was trying to say, something other than good sense took over. Rather than say the words that would keep Chester in the friend zone, his mouth continued of its own volition.

“…we’ll just have to keep it a secret.”

****  
TBC


	5. Dinner at Mike's

Mike pulled the gray and white checkered electric blanket closer around his legs and shifted deeper into the cushions of his couch. Lexie stretched next to him and turned onto her back, her tail flicking lazily in his direction as he ignored her and furiously typed back another text. His dinner plate with the crusts of a hastily prepared frozen pizza was abandoned on the coffee table and his second glass of wine was nearly gone. There hadn’t been a lot of cooking happening after school the past week. Too much of his time was being taken with other things. 

**Mike:** _It’s getting close to my bedtime, you know._

**Chester:** _You haven’t been to bed on time for two weeks, as far as I know. One more night won’t hurt you._

**Mike:** _If I miss another morning run, you won’t want to talk to me anymore. I’ll weigh 50 pounds more than I did the last time you saw me._

**Chester:** _Stop eating Kit-Kats then._

Mike grinned at his phone. He’d seen Chester only briefly twice in the two weeks since their coffee date, and both of those were the Tuesday afternoons that the insurance agent had come to retrieve his daughters after flute tutorials. That hadn’t stopped the two of them from texting almost non-stop, and talking into the late hours. Not surprisingly, the more Mike talked to Chester, the more enraptured he became with the father of the Bennington twins.

**Mike:** _Not giving up my Kit-Kats. You need to more strictly enforce bedtimes around your house so we can talk earlier. I’m falling asleep._

**Chester:** _I don’t think you need as much sleep as you think you do. Live a little._

Chester’s last message was read with one eye open as Mike rubbed the other. He was sleepy, and his entire nighttime routine was off. It had been shot to hell the night after he told Chester he wanted to get to know him better, after he insisted they keep their interest in each other a secret. They’d exchanged numbers at Momentum, and Chester had only waited until that evening to text him the first time. From there, their conversations exploded. 

**Mike:** _How do you know what I need?_

**Chester:** _Trust me. I know._

Mike giggled under his breath and leaned his head back into the cushion, staring at the ceiling in his living room. The recessed lighting wasn’t on, and the lamp in the corner behind him was casting shadows around every bit of furniture. He knew he should get up and go to bed, but he was afraid he’d fall asleep, and then he’d miss out on his now nightly conversation with Chester.

_Rob knows something is up with me. I’ve been dragging at school. I’m so far off my schedule right now it’s ridiculous._ He thought about the way his contacts had been burning when he put them in the last few mornings, and his rush to get to school on time after skipping his morning run and sleeping an extra hour. Keeping up with Chester Bennington was proving to be exhausting, in the most exhilarating way. Mike was both excited and scared about what that could potentially mean if and when they became _boyfriends_.

He bit down on his bottom lip nervously. It was so unlike him to already be thinking the word _boyfriends_. Mike was utterly cautious when it came to new people in all facets of his life, but Chester had turned that whole pragmatic approach upside down. There was something so fascinating and wholly captivating about him, and Mike was smitten. He spent the entire day looking forward to the phone call he knew would be coming around nine-thirty, after Lily and Lila had gone to their rooms for the night. The sound of Chester’s hushed voice through his iPhone speaker had his stomach tied up in breathless knots the entire time they talked.

Through those secret conversations, Mike had learned about Chester’s favorite color (red), his favorite candy (sour patch kids), and his small Pomeranian (Lucy). They’d talked over how Mike met Brad (at a college frat party) and Chester had smoothed over how he met Talinda (in a bar - no mention of sleeping with her that same night). Chester had asked about Mike’s family (two parents - still married - a younger brother and sister-in-law and two small nieces, ages three and a surprising two). Mike had learned that Chester was an only child. 

No matter how carefully Mike tried to tread in their conversations, Chester had a way of making him want to open up and talk. He’d given Chester more personal information in their nighttime talks than anyone he’d ever met. Their entire relationship felt far more intimate than it should after one short coffee date. Every time Mike tried to make sense of it, he stopped himself. Some things were better off unexplained, and he felt that his instant connection and infatuation with Chester Bennington was one of those things. 

It was the reason he found himself asking via text after the second Tuesday he’d so briefly seen Chester, “do you want to come over to my place for dinner on Friday night after you drop off the girls at Talinda’s?” and shielding his eyes as though Chester could see the panic in them from across the miles between their houses. Mike was terrified that Chester would say no, then elated when he agreed without even a moment’s hesitation. A real date was on the horizon, and even though tomorrow was already Friday, it seemed as though it couldn’t come quickly enough.

_I can’t even tell Mom. I know she’d be relieved to know I’m not just sitting here in the house sulking with Lexie. She’s been so pleased to see me the past few Sundays. But if I tell her, she’ll mention it to Jay, and that’s the last thing I need. Jay would tell Hahn, and I’d get fired. Fired![/i] Clutching his phone tightly, Mike shook his head at himself. [i]I know he wants me to be happier, but the ethics of the situation will get in the way. That means no gushing over Chester at our weekly family dinner. Ugh. I shouldn’t have started going again. I was right. It was safer here at home._

**Chester:** _Still awake?_

The text jolted Mike’s thoughts back to his phone and away from his worrying. 

**Mike:** _Yeah, sorry. I was thinking about tomorrow._

**Chester:** _Work?_

**Mike:** _Sort of._

Mike was ready to text an explanation when his phone vibrated in his hand and Chester’s name scrolled across the top. With a smile, he swiped right and placed the phone to his ear. “Hey.”

“Hey, yourself. How are you thinking about work when you’re supposed to be sleeping?” Chester teased.

“I’ve got to do something to stay awake for you,” Mike shot back, scrunching his nose as the tried not to giggle. “How was your day?”

“You mean, how were those minutes between my texts to you? They were okay. But nothing beats talking to you, Mike. Insurance is incredibly dull.” There was a pause in their flirting before Chester sighed and got serious. “So, tell me about your day. I know it was far more entertaining than mine.”

Pulling Lexie onto his lap, Mike launched into a story about his lunch duty that day, and how much he despised having to be out of the band hall one day a week to deal with the general population of students. Chester filled Mike in on what he had for lunch, and the auto claim he’d worked on in the afternoon with a woman who was borderline hysterical. From there Mike mentioned Dave, and how irritating it was that his theater production was taking the whole stage in the auditorium every day, when all all he wanted was an hour’s rehearsal before contest next week. 

Chester countered that complaint with details of the props the theater department was using for the play, and how difficult they were to move. “Do you go to the plays, Mike?” he asked, as though he wanted to prove his point - that setting up for the play was an ordeal Mike didn’t fully appreciate.

“Well, no… usually the administration and the department chairs go to those,” Mike admitted, scratching Lexie under the chin. He felt her purring on his chest and thought about how long it had been since he’d had anyone but his cat lying so close to him.

“You should. Lily would think that was so dope, if you came to the play. It might even get her to stop complaining about how mean you are,” Chester suggested playfully. “Lila’s got your back in those conversations, talking about how much she adores you, but it would do more for your reputation with my fiesty child if you made an effort to see her doing something she’s excited about.”

“Wow, Bennington, I feel like I’m getting lectured on by my principal,” Mike complained. “I’m sure you’re right. I should go to more things. I go to the kids’ sports games, but… Mr. Farrell gets under my skin. I haven’t been to a theater production since he came to McArthur.”

Mike could almost hear Chester’s satisfied smile through the phone. “Sounds to me like it’s time to check one out. Lily’s the lead, you know. I’ll be at every single show.” He let the statement linger as a temptation, and Mike took the bait.

“Okay. I’ll go. For Lily,” he clarified.

“Of course,” Chester said. “Yours truly being there has [i]nothing[/i] to do with your change of heart.”

Mike felt the blush in his cheeks and was grateful Chester couldn’t see him. “Well, it is a nice bonus.”

“A bonus,” Chester mused. “You’re funny,” he decided, a light giggle escaping his lips. “Teachers might not get a monetary bonus, but you got me when you got my girls. I hope that keeps feeling like a bonus and not a curse.”

“I can’t imagine you could end up being a curse,” Mike said softly, thinking about Chester’s toffee brown eyes. He couldn’t wait to see him in person again, at home where they had plenty of time to enjoy looking at and talking to each other. “Chester, I really do have to go to sleep now. I won’t even be functional tomorrow if I don’t,” Mike almost whined, but caught himself, forcing an authoritative adult tone in its place.

“Well, I want you to be well rested so you don’t burn our dinner,” Chester laughed, “which is your number one priority. Forget work, forget the kids. That’s what you have an assistant for.”

“Yeah, I’m sure Rob would be thrilled if I pawned my classes off on him due to lack of sleep. Don’t you worry about the food, it’s all under control.”

_As is everything in your life… I’m sure you have an immaculate plan,_ Chester thought before he said instead, “I trust you. Go to sleep, Mike. I’ll see you tomorrow at seven sharp.”

“Looking forward to it,” Mike said right before they clicked off the line, and laid with his phone on his chest, smiling into space at the thought of Chester Bennington being in his house in less than twenty-four hours. He hadn’t fallen asleep on the couch since he was in college, but everything was so off-kilter with Chester now in his life that Mike let his eyes fall closed and was asleep on his couch with Lexie before he even realized what was happening.

****

“Mr. Shinoda?”

A very sleepy Mike Shinoda blinked and looked over at Rob’s slightly annoyed face. “I’m sorry, what was that, Mr. Bourdon?” He could feel all sixty pairs of student eyes on him and he started to feel a little warm from embarassment. It was fifth period on Friday… a day that was dragging by painfully slowly, and he was supposed to be listening to the run-through of one of Rob’s contest pieces and offering suggestions. He’d been lost in the mental preparation and planning of the upcoming evening. Thinking over what he would wear. What he planned to cook, and the few fresh ingredients he needed to stop at the market for on the way home. What he thought could potentially happen now that he’d invited Chester to his house.

Now Rob’s band was all looking at him as he tried to shift his thinking to what he was supposed to be doing. “I asked if the trumpet sound was bothering you on that entrance at forty-one.” Rob pushed his glasses up on his nose and looked at Mike, a low level of concern showing on his face.

“Oh, um, no, it wasn’t bothering me,” Mike answered, looking down at the music in front of him. “Go back to thirty-five and do it again, just to make sure.” He kept his eyes on the parts in front of him and refused to look at Rob for the rest of rehearsal. The grilling would come during their conference period. He still had to get through sixth period with some semblance of normalcy before that would occur, and Mike hated knowing he would have to admit he’d been distracted.

The end of Rob’s band class signaled the start of Mike’s beginner woodwinds, but Mike somehow managed to avoid Rob in the class transition, busying himself straightening chairs as his kids came into the room. Without turning around he could hear the precise moment Lily Bennington strolled in, her voice bright and cheerful as she chatted with her friend, Victoria. He could hear them talking about the opening night of the _Wizard of Oz_ , which was a mere two weeks away. 

“You should see my ruby red shoes,” Lily was gushing. “Mom had them made for me for the play! They have red crystals covering them so they glitter under the stage lights! I told my mom that if I had to wear that awful blue and white plaid jumper, I had to have awesome shoes. It’s not fair Ella gets the best costume.”

“Ella is Glenda, right?” Victoria asked as she got her clarinet out of her locker. “I think Glenda is so pretty in the movie. She definitely has a great costume.”

“Well, my shoes will put her pink cotton candy costume to shame.” 

Lily tossed her hair over her shoulder, and Mike looked up in time to see her throwing a curious look in his direction. He finished fixing the set up and took a seat in his tall comfortable chair on the podium. “Band, once your instruments are assembled, I want you to open to your scale page and review the concert b-flat scale until everyone is set.”

“Mr. Shinoda!” Lily waved her hand from the from row, her flute case unopened as she sat down and begged for his attention.

“Lily, I’ll answer your question once your flute is assembled.” He looked a few chairs over at Lila, who was already studiously fingering through the assignment. _At least one of them listens to what I have to say._

“But Mr. Shinoda, I can put my flute together while you answer my question!” Lily complained, opening the latches of her case and jamming the parts of her flute together. Mike cringed every time he watched her abuse the delicate instrument.

“What is your question, Miss Bennington?” he asked, noticing that Lila looked up at him at the same time as Lily when she heard him say ‘Miss Bennington.’

“I was wondering if you are coming to opening night of the Wizard of Oz,” she asked excitedly. “I’ve asked all of my teachers today. I think everyone should be there to see my big debut - even you.” Lily pursed her lips and looked at Mike, and it was clear to him that she thought he would tell her no. 

“Absolutely, Lily,” he answered, keeping his voice business-like. “I told you that if you got the lead in the play, I’d be there.”

“Actually, what you said was if she got to Broadway, you’d come to her first show,” Jared piped up from the saxophone section, pushing his nerdy wire-framed glasses up while he chanted the facts as he remembered them.

“Yes, yes, you’re correct, Mr. Hanks.” Mike nodded sagely as he sized up his first chair saxophonist. “I know what I said. I feel like this middle school production of _The Wizard of Oz_ is just as worthy of my time as Broadway.” He looked at Jared before he turned back to Lily. “I’ll be there, opening night,” he promised, “and in return, you’ll pass off this b-flat scale, right?”

Lily’s face fell as Mike placed the condition on his attendance at her first big moment, and he immediately realized his mistake. “I knew you wouldn’t come. You know I can’t play that stupid scale!” she cried, stomping her foot a little on the carpet as she carelessly abandoned her flute on the empty chair next to her. 

“Lil,” Lila said from two chairs over. “You _can_ play it. We worked on it last night together, remember?” She leaned over to peer at her sister’s despondent expression. “Just put your thumb on the round button, it’s easier that way.”

Mike looked from one sister to the other, and nodded. “It is easier on thumb b-flat,” he said, and the whole class waited to see if Lily Bennington would pick up her flute and try to play, or throw a fit and ask to be excused to the bathroom. 

By some small miracle, Lily picked up her flute and played through the grade with everyone else. Mike thought he could even see a little furrow of concentration on her face as she thought about each note. _I hope she plays it right. Come on, Lily. I know you can do it._

She looked shocked at herself when she played the test with only a minor timing lapse. Lila clapped her hands together as Lily beamed at Mike. “Very good, Lily!” he exclaimed, “the flute chairs will be interesting this week!” He looked down at the grades he’d assigned and realized that for the very first time, Lily Bennington wasn’t going to be last chair. 

“Nice job, Lily,” Jared called from behind her, and Mike chuckled inside his head. Poor nerdy Jared had the biggest, most obvious crush on Lily, and it was painful how uninterested she was in him.

“Thanks,” she responded airily before looking at Mike. “Mr. Shinoda? Can I go to the bathroom?” 

Even though he’d agreed to Chester’s suggestion that he not let the girls go to the bathroom during band, Mike didn’t have the heart to tell her no despite knowing she didn’t need to go to the bathroom. The remainder of the class blew by as they worked on music for their first concert next month. It was far easier to make progress now that the twins seemed to be invested in the class and working harder.

He was smiling when he dropped into his crooked desk chair in the office after class. It was only an hour until he was free, and four until he had Chester at his house. The tingles of anticipation were blitzing through him, and he was far more alert than he’d been all day.

“You look like you’ve just had an I.V. of caffeine injected into your veins,” Rob commented as he came into the office, tossing his music and stick bag on to the counter by the phone. 

“Just had a great class,” Mike responded, watching as Rob dug around in his bag for his shaker bottle and protein powder. He was about to ask Rob if he could duck out a little early so he could head on over to the market when he felt his phone vibrate. Thinking his assistant was occupied, Mike dug the phone out of his front pocket and peered at the message. 

**Chester:** _Lily texted me that she passed her test!_

Even though students weren’t allowed to text during class, Mike couldn’t help but smile at the message.

**Mike:** _Yes! She did a great job!_

It dawned on him that when Lily asked to go to the bathroom, she’d left the band hall to text her dad to let him know she’d passed off her scale. He couldn’t even find it in himself to be mad she’d broken the rules. It was exciting to him that she cared enough to share the news.

“Alright,” Rob said drily, leaning against the counter as he shook his shaker bottle and stared at Mike. “You’ve been distracted by that damn phone so much lately. I haven’t seen you with your phone out this much since… well, since things were good with Brad.” Rob’s eyes narrowed as Mike’s cheeks blushed pink. 

“I’ve been a little distracted,” Mike admitted, looking all around the office, anywhere but Rob.

“A little? My band could have been playing Happy Birthday and you wouldn’t have noticed.” Rob plopped down in his chair and stretched his feet out to the counter he’d just been leaning on. “So, tell me about him. How’d you meet?”

“How do you know I’m not talking to my mom?” Mike threw out desperately. He wasn’t prepared for this conversation, not yet.

“Come on, Shinoda. I’m not stupid. Nobody smiles that much at their mom’s texts. Anyway… I know you’ve got good taste, you hired me.” Rob grinned as he swiped a hand in the air down the length of his body. “So, what’s he look like?”

“I hired you because you were the best person for the job, not withstanding your ego,” Mike replied, rolling his eyes. “Um, well, he’s… very fit.” He looked down at his phone as another text came through. 

**Chester:** _Can’t wait to see you again._

Mike felt his heart flutter in excitement. It felt like things were moving so fast, even though they’d only been on one date!

“Fit? That’s all you’re gonna give me? Come on, Mike. You know I won’t say anything.” Rob pushed his glasses up and gave Mike his best puppy dog eyes.

“Um… brown hair… brown eyes. About my height.” Mike thumbed off a quick “me too” response to Chester’s text and put his phone on his desk. He wanted to say, “and he’s got these flame tattoos on his wrists, and gauges in his ears, and he doesn’t look a thing like what you’d expect me to fall for, but I’ve fallen hard. We talk every night and I already feel like I know him.” Instead he shrugged. “I don’t know, Bourdie, we’re just getting started. I don’t want to jinx it.” 

Rob nodded. “Okay, I get that. I’m just… I’m happy to see you getting back out there. Life’s too short to not be happy.”

Mike almost mentioned Rob’s coworker crush, Miss Armstrong, but didn’t. He knew Rob would make a move eventually, he was just waiting for the right opportunity. “You’re right. I wasn’t looking for someone, but I’ve found him, and I’d like to see where it goes without all the pressure from you guys.” It sounded like a sensible excuse, and Mike was relieved when Rob nodded.

“I get it. I do.” He took a few more sips of his protein shake in silence, thinking things over, before he looked back at Mike. “At least tell me his name.”

_Name? I can’t give Chester’s name, Bourdie will know instantly who I’m talking about! A name! I need a name!_ “Paul,” Mike blurted out, mentally kicking himself for coming up with such an old man sounding name.

“Paul?” Rob raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Please tell me he’s some boring accountant guy. That’s the perfect gig for a gay guy with a name like Paul.”

Mike nodded. “Yep, you got it. Accountant. Totally my style, right?” He turned back to his desk and started moving around papers. 

“As long as he’s good to you, I don’t care what his name is or what he does,” Rob decided, tipping back the last of his drink. “I know you’ll be careful, and go slow, so there’s no sense in me saying that part. But remember to have fun, too. Okay? You tend to be too serious.” He tucked his bottle back into his bag and busied himself with his end of the day routine the consisted of one last glance through his school email and turning off his computer.

“Right.” Mike nodded, thinking over his plans for the evening. _Fun. I can have fun._ He didn’t say anything else, just kept glancing at his watch, waiting for the school day to end. 

****

Hours later, Mike peered into the rice cooker as he tightened the tie on his red and black checkered apron. The jasmine rice was done and in need of being fluffed, and the teriyaki chicken was almost cooked all the way through when he’d checked it five minutes ago. The edges of his snow peas were almost to the perfect crispiness, and he had three minutes until Chester was supposed to arrive. 

He resisted the urge to pat his hand over his hair and check it again. The last time he’d looked in the reflection of the microwave, every strand was still perfectly in place. The black polo-style shirt he was wearing was still neatly laying over his dark jeans, and his black socks were hole-free. _I hope he doesn’t think it’s weird when I ask him to take his shoes off at the door. I should have mentioned that in all those conversations we’ve had. I should have said a lot of things. I still can’t believe he’s coming here._

All of the anxieties and excitement Mike had been feeling since the non-date coffee date were shifting around inside him while the clock ticked away the seconds until Chester’s arrival. So many things had been said since that morning, but there was still so much to discover about each other. Deep down, Mike was terrified that once Chester knew enough, he’d leave.

_Like Brad._

Mike’s eyes shot up to the built-in wine rack, then across the kitchen. He looked at the light fixtures they had replaced together, at the furniture they had bought together, and he willed Brad out of his mind. _Brad is gone. And just because he left you doesn’t mean everyone will. Even if you don’t want kids._

So far, that particular subject hadn’t come up in his conversations with Chester. Mike knew that the other man doted on his girls. It was obvious in how they acted at school, and how Chester talked about them, that they had a very close relationship. Mike was fond of Lila, but he and Lily still had not warmed up to each other, and he wasn’t sure if they ever would. Without even asking, Mike knew that would be a deal breaker for Chester. He didn’t want to think about it now, but something had to be done about his relationship with the high-spirited twin if his relationship with Chester was going to go anywhere. Maybe going to the play would be a step in the right direction.

_I’ll think about that later. Right now, I have to worry about getting this food on the plate and pouring wine, and I hope dessert is good…_

He bit down on his bottom lip, sucking it into his mouth and worrying it with his teeth as he glanced over at the apple stuffed puff pastries on the cooling rack. It had been a long time since he’d made apple dumplings, and he hoped they had turned out as tasty as he remembered them. He had homemade caramel sauce ready to heat to drizzle over the tops, and fat sugar crystals to sprinkle on the caramel. The coffee maker was primed. All he would have to do is press the button when he brought their dinner dishes to the sink, and coffee would be ready before he’d finished rinsing the plates. Mike was confident in his ability to plan, and he knew he had a perfect evening ready to go. An impressive evening. An evening that showed how put together he was, and how interested he was in making sure Chester had a good time. _Being organized is fun. I’m fun._

The chime of the front bell somehow managed to surprise him, even though he’d been expecting it. It was exactly seven o’clock. He’d already known that Chester would be on time, but he still felt his heart jump in excited surprise, and he completely forgot about his apron as he made his way to the front door of the modest townhome. 

It felt like he opened the door in slow motion. There was Chester Bennington on his doorstep, and Mike’s breathing all but stopped as their eyes met and a slow grin spread over Chester’s face. 

“Come on in.” Somehow Mike found his voice, stepping back to make room for Chester to walk inside the door. He was dressed casually, jeans and Converse, a Metallica t-shirt, and his flame tattoos were on full display. Mike forced himself not to sigh in satisfaction as he shut the door behind Chester. 

Chester’s eyes moved over the entry space and what he could see of the living room quickly before he ran his eyes over Mike’s entire body. He wanted to mention the apron, but he wasn’t sure they were at a point where he could make a good natured joke yet. “It’s so good to see you outside of the school, Mike,” he said instead.

“Yeah, I forgot what you looked like without your insurance agent outfit on,” Mike teased, and Chester’s smile grew wider. “Would you mind taking off your shoes? It’s a thing,” Mike started, his confidence faltering slightly. 

“Cultural?” Chester asked as he nodded, toeing off his Converse and scooting them neatly over beside a pair of Adidas slides that he assumed were Mike’s. “Japanese, maybe?”

Mike nodded. “You been running background checks?” He quirked an eyebrow at Chester. It was so much easier to talk to him in person now that they’d spent so many hours on the phone. 

“I _might_ have looked up ’Shinoda’ just to get an idea,” he admitted, following Mike into the living room. He looked over the color palette - or lack thereof - and took in the shades of white and grey, the black furniture. There was a noticeable lack of color in the room, and he wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. His entire world was lived in color. Having two teenage girls tended to do that to a home. Everything that wasn’t a bright, vibrant color seemed to be covered in glitter, and Chester had to admit he really didn’t mind.

“Well, I hope I don’t disappoint,” Mike said lightly, even though his heart was racing with anticipation. It was work to keep his voice normal. “My dad is Japanese,” he confirmed as they stepped into the kitchen.

“Makes sense,” Chester responded, his eyes coasting over the stainless appliances and white surfaces of Mike’s kitchen. _It’s all very clean. And modern. But with zero personality. I wonder why that is._ He looked over at Mike, whose attention had been diverted away from Chester and onto the meat in the oven. Chester leaned against the counter and watched as Mike opened the oven and used his oven mitt covered hand to extract what looked like chicken on a baking sheet.

“I hope you like teriyaki,” Mike commented over his shoulder, a bit more insecurity taking hold. _I probably should have asked. Not everyone likes Asian food._

But Mike’s fears were unfounded. “I love it! I’m already certain yours will be better than anything I’ve had. I only ever get Asian food at cheap little restaurants,” Chester explained. “And actually, mostly Chinese take out places.” He shrugged. “I’m not much of a cook, I hate to admit. Between having twins and working, I didn’t have a lot of time to learn when I was younger. I can make great Ramen noodles, though.”

Mike turned to Chester, the joke passing over his head, with a scandalized look on his face. “Ramen noodles? Like - in the ten cent packet?”

“I think they’re more like fifteen cents these days,” Chester said airily, and Mike giggled, the joke suddenly clear.

“Whatever. That’s not real food.” Mike fussed over his chicken for a minute before he opened a cabinet and took down two plates. “I hope this is better than Ramen and Chinese takeout.”

Chester watched while he spooned a mound of jasmine rice on each plate, then covered it with chicken and teriyaki sauce. The snow peas on the side added the right amount of color to the plate. “It smells amazing,” he offered, not missing the small smile the compliment brought to Mike’s face.

“Go ahead into the dining room,” Mike instructed, pointing in the right direction before picking up the two plates. “I’ve got wine in there for us.” _So far, so good. It’s no different than talking on the phone. Except I can see him, and he can see me, and he’ll be able to tell I’m totally infatuated with him if I’m not careful!_ He couldn’t help that his eyes dropped down to Chester’s ass as he followed him out of the kitchen. _Fuck. I’d love to get my hands on that._

He shook away the thought as he set both white plates on the black placemats. Chester pulled out his chair and sat down while Mike reached for the bottle he had chilling in a special container on the table. “It’s a Reisling. One of my favorites. White okay with you? If not, I have a red that would go with the chicken also.” 

Chester met Mike’s inquisitive glance with a nod of approval. “White’s fine. You did a nice job with this, Mike.” The glow of his compliment radiated over Mike’s face as he poured the wine. Chester waited until they had both had full glasses before he picked his up and gave the wine a taste. “Oh, yeah, this is really great.”

Another compliment, and Mike’s heart was jumping in his chest. It always felt good to have met the approval of someone else. “I’m glad you like it,” he returned formally before he looked down at himself and broke from his cool exterior. “Oh! God! I still have my apron on!” 

Hastily he stood, reaching behind him to untie the apron, wishing it would disappear magically. _I’m such an idiot with this apron on still! I must look like a complete disaster!_

“Mike, it’s all good,” Chester said, chuckling lightly as he cut a piece of chicken to take his first bite. “It’s one more reason I’m convinced this is going to be the best teriyaki ever. You legit know how to cook, apron and all.” 

Mike neatly folded the apron and set it aside while he watched Chester scoop some rice onto this fork with the bite of chicken and tested it out. The surprised look on the other man’s face instantly dissolved his embarrassment over the apron. “Looks like you approve.”

“Approve? This is amazing! You know, my girls would love this,” Chester said with zero inhibition as he scooped up another bite. “They’re always wanting Chinese takeout, but this is a million times better.”

“Maybe someday I can make it for them,” Mike offered carefully. “It’s always more fun to cook when you aren’t just cooking for yourself.” He looked down at his plate and cut a small bite of his chicken. _We’re already talking about the twins. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not._

Chester nodded enthusiastically. “You can practice on us any day.” He looked up to meet Mike’s somewhat guarded eyes, and amended, “you know… when you’re ready to ‘meet’ them outside of school.” He watched Mike nod before he set down his fork to continue, “I know. It’s crazy. I feel like things are moving pretty fast between us, even though we’ve hardly seen each other. I’m really enjoying our conversations though, and I feel like I already know you. Like we’ve been dating for weeks. I… I’m glad you asked me to come here tonight.”

Mike regarded him with sparkling eyes. “I feel it too. Really. It’s crazy. And I have to admit, I’m afraid of messing this up… of moving too fast. Not to mention the fact that until your girls are out of my class, we really can’t be open about where this is heading. But I’ll cook for you… any night you’re free, you can come here.” They were sitting catty-corner at the square dining table, and Mike was close enough to knock his knee gently into Chester’s. “You know… if you want to.”

To his surprise, Chester reached over and squeezed his hand that was resting next to his plate. “I want to.” 

The whole mood of the evening seemed to shift for Mike as he looked into Chester’s eyes, so close to him at the table. He didn’t miss the way Chester’s eyes dropped to his lips for the most fleeting moment, or how he licked his lips before Mike managed to say, “okay, then.” 

Chester took a deep breath and let go of Mike’s hand, gesturing to their plates. “I don’t want your hard work to get cold. Let’s eat. We’ve got all night for… other things.”

Mike almost dropped his fork but he nodded, keeping his composure even as his mind raced ahead to what they could do after dinner. _Slow down, damnit. Just because I haven’t been with anyone in over a year doesn’t mean he wants to jump in bed with me tonight. I didn’t even change the sheets, there’s no way we’re going upstairs. Oh my God, I should have changed the sheets._

As they ate, Chester chatted away about the house, asking questions about this and that and taking in Mike’s facial expressions during each story he told. The more Mike talked, the lonelier his life sounded, and Chester was hit with the realization that he needed to tread carefully. _This will never work if he’s still hung up on his ex. I don’t even know how to ask about that without being callous. But I need to know._

Chester scooped up his last forkful of chicken as Mike was finishing his story about the renovations that had been completed on the townhome. “So, yeah, I’ve been here five years, now. There’s not anything left, really, that I want to change. Most of that was finished before Brad and I split up.”

Mike stood up, ending the conversation about Brad, asking Chester if he was finished with his plate and taking both of their empty dishes into the kitchen. _I’m talking about Brad too much. I don’t even care about him anymore. I need to shut up._ He felt Chester behind him as he rinsed the plates and stuck them in the dishwasher.

“You want to see the rest of it before dessert?” Mike asked, wiping his wet hands on a dish towel. “There’s just two rooms upstairs, it won’t take long.”

“You made dessert, too?” Chester asked, looking around the kitchen and spotting a covered dish next to the stove. “Wow. I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if this got to be a regular thing.”

Mike folded his dish towel and laid it on the counter, then turned toward the dining room. “You’d have to run with me,” Mike laughed, glancing over his shoulder. “Dessert is the reason I wake up at five am.”

“I still say that’s too early for anyone to be awake,” Chester grumbled under his breath playfully, following Mike up the stairs. _Look at his ass. Fuck. I wonder what he’d do if I just reached out and grabbed it?_ He didn’t get the chance, Mike moving out of reach when he stepped onto the second level. 

“That’s my office,” he pointed into the first bedroom, “and here’s a small bathroom, across from the laundry room and this huge closet.” 

Chester looked inside the secondary bathroom at the tiny vanity and walk-in shower. _The girls would never be able to function in a bathroom like this. Oh well, I guess the secondary bathroom isn’t a concern when you don’t have any kids._

“And this is the master, with an attached bathroom.” Mike flipped the light switch on as he stepped into his bedroom and moved to the side so Chester could join him.

Lexie was in the middle of the bed, sleeping, her face tucked into her chest. Like the rest of the house, the bedroom was clean and sleek, but cold, and Chester couldn’t help himself. “Okay, I have to ask. What’s with all the black and white and gray? Do you hate colors or something?” 

Mike scrubbed his sock-covered toe into the gray carpeting and looked at the floor. “I like color,” he said hesitantly. “This was just all Brad and I could agree on. We just didn’t have the same taste in home decor. So we went the minimalistic route.”

Chester watched Mike stuff his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “I’m sorry, Mike. I didn’t mean to sound like a dick. It just occurred to me that there’s not a pop of color in the whole house.” He looked around the room, at the white and gray blanket neatly covering what looked like a deep pocket mattress on a giant black framed bed, the white lamps on black nightstands, the black dresser and mirror. “We could go shopping sometime, you know. I’ll let you pick out anything you want,” he offered teasingly, hoping to bring a smile back to Mike’s face.

“Shopping? We’d have to go into the city to try to avoid people around here,” Mike said instantly, though he didn’t hate the idea. _He’s right. I do need something new. Some color. Something I love that Brad would have hated. Something that reminds me of Chester._

“Sounds like a great third date,” Chester commented, delighted when Mike’s eyes flashed to his instantly.

“Third? But the coffee-”

“Come on, Mike, you knew that was a date. You had to have known.” Chester’s smile lit up his whole face. “Who takes their kid’s teacher out for coffee just to say thank you for doing their job? I wanted to see you again, and that was the only way I could get you to say yes. Now, come on,” Chester said, ducking out of the bedroom and starting down the stairs. “I hear there’s dessert.”

Mike flipped of the lights hastily and followed Chester back to the main floor, startled when Chester turned at the bottom of the steps and caught him looking. “Mr. Shinoda, were you looking at my ass?

“Maybe,” Mike said coyly, ducking his chin again and looking up at Chester through his lashes. _He is so gorgeous. Fuck. I want to kiss him. Can I kiss him? Is it too soon?_

“You’ve got a nice ass, too.” 

Suddenly Chester’s voice was lower, and Mike felt that same stirring of desire he’d felt every time they’d locked eyes. He raised an eyebrow at Chester’s tone, and decided he had to get back into the kitchen. With a smirk, he neatly sidestepped Chester, knowing the other man would follow. _No kissing. Not tonight. We’re going to take it slow. School isn’t out for another three months._

The thought of keeping this secret, and keeping himself under control, for three months was daunting, and Mike knew pretty instantly that once they kissed, that would be the end for him. He could already picture Chester’s naked body on his slate gray sheets, and he immediately forced himself to think of something else when he felt the blood rush to his dick. There would be no dessert if Mike let his hormones get the best of him.

“I hope you like apple dumplings,” he said over his shoulder, putting a little bit of sassy sway into his hips as he walked.

“You have no idea,” Chester said as he tagged along behind, wondering how many secret dates they’d have to go on before he got to grab Mike’s Shinoda’s ass. 

****  
TBC


	6. The Wizard of Oz

Mike could feel Rob’s eyes on him from across the office. He’d been studiously ignoring his assistant’s glances for almost an entire hour, managing to not flinch even when Rob got extra annoying with the shaker bottle just to try to get a reaction. It was opening night of _The Wizard of Oz_ , and Mike hadn’t told Rob he was planning to stay after school for it yet. He told himself it was because it just hadn’t come up organically in conversation, but it was really because he knew that Rob would see right through his excuse, or worse, start connecting the dots.

He hadn’t asked Mike much about “Paul” in the past two weeks, but just the change in Mike’s predictable attitude at work was enough for Rob to know things were serious. In the six years they had worked together, Mike had never been late to his morning rehearsal, but twice in the last week he’d been two minutes late to school. Mike was spending their brief lunch time texting, and grinning at his phone, instead of answering emails or doing other work. And most notably, his patience with the Bennington twins seemed to have multiplied to something almost god-like. Then there was his curious new tolerance for Dave Farrell.

It was Mike’s lack of snarky responses to the theater teacher that had Rob scratching his head and trying to figure out what was up with his boss. Mike wasn’t exactly friendly, but he wasn’t scowling every time Dave’s name came up in conversation, either. He hadn’t made any disparaging remarks about the upcoming theater production, and had even helped hook up the sound equipment for the dress rehearsal when the student in charge came down with the flu suddenly. 

Eight minutes after the time they could officially leave, Mike swiveled around in his chair to face Rob, who had been staring at the side of his head for at least five straight minutes.

“What?” Mike asked, his fingers reaching for his phone without thought. “Aren’t you going home?” 

“You’ve been weird this afternoon. Something on your mind? Meeting up with Paul later?” Rob asked, looking pointedly at Mike’s phone.

Mike paused. He _was_ going see Chester later, but that didn’t fit with him staying for the opening night of the play. Trying to keep his story straight was disconcerting. “Um, no, actually. I, uh, I promised Lily Bennington I’d come to the play tonight. It’s opening night, and all that. I figured I could be supportive.” Mike’s eyes skipped away from Rob’s as the other man’s eyebrows raised so high in disbelief that Mike could see them over the top of his glasses frames.

“ _You’re_ going to the play?” Rob asked incredulously. “A Dave Farrell production? Willingly?” Rob shook his head. “What’s gotten into you, Shinoda? You hate theater. And Dave. And Lily!”

“I don’t hate Lily,” Mike objected immediately, his face showing signs of a mild panic as he fidgeted with the collar of his pale blue and orange pinstriped dress shirt. “Don’t say that. I may not have connected with her at the start of the year, but we seem to be okay now.”

“The start of the year?” Rob repeated. “You mean until March? When you figured out her name? That’s like… three-quarters of the year. I didn’t think she was doing _that_ great.” Rob kept staring at Mike as if he’d suddenly grown three heads.

“She’s been trying harder. And Lila’s really blossomed in the last month. They’re turning out to be okay.” Mike turned to his computer and clicked the button to shut it down for the weekend. “I don’t know. Lily asked me to go, and I figured that might be the extra push she needed to see that I’m not this horrible person for wanting her to sit correctly in her chair and hold her flute right.” _Not to mention that if I’m ever going to take things further with Chester, I have to know that she wouldn’t stand in the way. I have to be on good terms with her. All she really wants is someone to pay attention to her. I can do that… the right kind of attention in the right setting. Not the attention seeking she tries in class._

Rob stood up, shrugging his shoulders before gathering his things to take home for the weekend. “So you’re going to the play. Dave is going to think you two are besties now.” He grinned suddenly. “Next thing you know he’ll be in here asking you to come to his prayer group or something.”

“That’s where I’ll draw the definitive line,” Mike said drily. “No Jesus at school.”

With a laugh, Rob turned back to Mike. “Well, you’ll have to let me know how Princess Lily does. I’m going home. It’s been a crazy week. I’m exhausted.” He waited for a moment, then pointed at Mike. “Don’t let this weird obsession with being teacher of the year for the Bennington twins get in the way of spending time with your boyfriend. I know how you are. You get sucked into school and the next thing you know, you’ll have put him off for three dates in a row and he’ll lose interest. Don’t do that, Mike. You seem really into him.”

Mike ducked his head and studied his hands. “I know. I’ll be fine. I’m just going to the play this one time.” _I can’t go more than that, it would be weird. People would think there was something weird going on between me and Lily, and that would be career-ending. Absolutely more so than people finding out I’m dating her dad._

“Okay. Well… I guess have a good weekend.” Rob paused at the doorway, his lunch bag slung over his shoulder, and looked at Mike again. “Behave yourself at the play,” he teased. “Keep those facial expressions neutral.”

“I’m a professional,” Mike responded with a grin. “Dave will never know how much I can’t stand him.” He watched Rob leave, tucking his hair behind his ear. “Hey!” he yelled out the office door, “get a haircut this weekend!” He chuckled to himself as Rob flipped him the middle finger through the window as he walked past the office. He had a little less than three hours until the start of the play, so he grabbed a folder of music to take down to the copy room. _Might as well make good use of the time._

He walked down the hallway, passing the open door to Jason’s room, and he paused before he decided to turn around and poke his head in. His brother was standing at the sink, a huge tray of paintbrushes on his left and a drying rack on the right.

“That looks like fun,” he commented over the running water, and Jason’s head snapped around to see Mike leaning against the door frame.

“Every Friday afternoon,” Jason comment cheerfully, motioning to the brush cleaner. “If I don’t soak them, I’d have to replace them far too often. These are expensive.”

Mike nodded. “I know. Maintenance is such a bitch sometimes.” He waved the stack of music he was holding in his hand through the air. “Need any copies? I’m headed down to the copy room.” The best time to make copies was after school, when their copy clerk had gone home for the day. Everyone affectionately called her the Copy Nazi behind her back, and she truly was over the top when it came to running the copy machine. As long as she was clocked in from eight to four, nobody else was allowed to touch the machine, not even for one single copy of one single paper.

“Nah.” Jason reached over and turned off the water, then dried his hands on the towel next to him. “What are you doing here on a Friday afternoon? You guys are usually out the door right at four fifteen.” He took a few steps toward his brother, one hand on his hip as he surveyed the end of the week mess that was his art room. 

“Going to the play,” Mike answered casually, as though he always went to school events. “I opened my big mouth in front of the class before auditions and told Lily Bennington that if she got the lead in the play, I’d come to opening night.” He rolled his eyes, trying to play it off. “So, here I am.”

“That’s good of you, Mike,” Jason said, cutting his eyes away from the ceramic dust covering a few of his worktables, over to look at his brother. “The kids always like seeing their teachers at school events.”

“Yeah, now I just have to kill three hours.” Mike looked around the art room. “Looks like you’ve got plenty to do in here.”

Jason nodded. “Always. This room is in a constant state of mess. Unlike yours.” 

It was no secret the brothers were completely opposite when it came to their classrooms. The kids often referred to them as “the cool Mr. Shinoda” and “the mean Mr. Shinoda” and it didn’t phase either of them one bit. Mike was fine with his hard ass reputation. It extended into the way their rooms looked - Jason’s was brightly cluttered, controlled chaos, and Mike’s was clean and precise, orderly. They couldn’t be more different. Their entire childhood had been marked with the same character traits.

“I was going to go grab a bite to eat before the play, you wanna join me?” Jason asked. “I’ll be finished here about the time you get finished with those copies. We can run to the burger place next door and be back before it starts.”

“Sure,” Mike agreed easily. “I’ll grab you when I’m on my way back to the band hall.” He waited for his brother to acknowledge what he’d said before he started back down the hallway. He had to pass through the cafeteria on the way to the copy room, and he could already hear the sounds of the theater crew setting up.

Mike was actually surprised at how well their student created back drops and props had managed to transform the cafeteria into the scene for the play. A whole different crew of kids - most of whom were in Jason’s art classes - made murals and scenery for the production. The yellow brick road was sparkling and the fake greenery looked as three-dimensional as a two-dimensional drawing could be. He tried to avoid running into Dave, but the theater teacher managed to appear right in his path when he was almost to the other side of the cafeteria.

“What do you think, Mike? The kids have done an amazing job on this, haven’t they?” Dave’s eyes were wide with excitement as he looked around the huge space and then back at Mike.

“It’s looking good,” Mike agreed, slowing his pace but not stopping.

“Are you coming tonight? I know the kids would be excited to see you. They love you,” Dave chattered amicably.

It was enough the bring Mike to a stop. “Really? Nah, they don’t love me. They’re usually complaining I’m too hard on them.” He fidgeted with the music he was holding, uncomfortable being the topic of conversation, but he was curious why Dave would say such a thing.

With a slap to Mike’s shoulder, Dave shook his head. “That’s what they love about you. You’re hard but you’re fair. Everyone is held to the same standard. They’re always talking about you and wanting to do their best in your class. And they would never dream of missing band for theater. I don’t even try with those kids. They’re very loyal.”

_Good. At least you know your place,_ Mike thought with his eyes narrowed. “They’re good kids,” he agreed, wishing Dave hadn’t touched him. “And yeah, I promised Lily I’d come see her. She’s pretty excited,” he added, looking toward the stage.

“She’s done such a great job. She’s mature beyond her years,” Dave said proudly. “I knew she was in band, but I have to say, between you and me, I’m kind of hoping she choses to only do theater next year. She’s a natural. I’d love to have her in my theater production class.” 

The wave of jealousy Mike felt was unexpected. “Oh yeah? Well, I guess we’ll have to see what she decides. She might actually like the flute now,” Mike responded behind grit teeth. _Just when I thought I could like him a little bit, here he is trying to steal kids out from under my nose._ “Well, I’ve got to make these copies,” Mike said, looking down at the stack in his hands. “I’ll see you tonight, Dave. Good luck, hope it goes well,” he added as an afterthought.

“God willing,” was Dave’s reply, and Mike was glad his back was to the theater teacher since he could hardly keep from rolling his eyes on his way out of the cafeteria.

He always felt like a criminal when he went into the copy room after hours, and the rule-following side of Mike Shinoda got a thrill out of breaking the rules and turning on the copier after it had already been shut down for the weekend. As soon as he flipped the switch, he looked toward the door, and breathed a sigh of relief that nobody was there to stop him. He made all the copies he wanted in just fifteen minutes. It was way better than turning it in to the Copy Nazi and waiting three days to get them back. 

While he waited, he snuck a look at his phone, even though he knew he didn’t have any new messages. Chester would be occupied with getting the twins dinner, and getting Lily ready in her costume, but it had been an hour since his last text. _You’re ridiculous, Mike. You’ve talked to him tons in the last few weeks. It won’t hurt you to go a few hours. And you’ll see him tonight. Even if it’s from across the room._

He sighed as he leaned against the copier, thinking of all the details that he’d shared with Chester in their late night conversations. More than once they had talked about Brad, with Chester carefully bringing up the subject and asking delicate questions that Mike was glad he didn’t have to answer face to face. The night he’d admitted to Chester that Brad left him for another man felt like the night he’d found out about the affair all over again. Chester had listened to the sordid details, then quietly told Mike he would have never disrespected him in such a way. After Mike got over his embarrassment he turned the tables on Chester, and found that his girls were the result of a drunken one-night stand, and the subsequent marriage was one of convenience. 

_”So, you married her because you got her pregnant?” Mike asked incredulously. “Even though you knew you liked men, too?”_

_“I was twenty-one, Mike. My parents weren’t keen on me being in a relationship with a man. Tal’s parents agreed to help us out while she finished school, and I got a good enough job at the agency to help us make ends meet. I owed it to her to let her finish her education and not let a drunken mistake ruin her life. We got along fine, but you know… there was no spark. We were roommates with kids. Once Lila got old enough to notice we didn’t act like other parents, I knew it was time to make a break. We weren’t doing them justice staying together for their sake.”_

_“Wow,” Mike said as he processed the concept of marrying someone and compromising everything you wanted for your life in pursuit of the other person’s dreams, realizing it was one more thing he and Chester had in common. “Who knew our stories were so similar.”_

Mike smiled ruefully at the memory of that conversation as the last of his copies printed. Every night they shared more intimate details of their lives with each other, and conversations had started to end with long pauses where a couple might have said “I love you” before hanging up. He knew he was completely infatuated with Chester Bennington, but infatuation and love weren’t the same thing… and he couldn’t fall in love until Chester’s kids were out of his class.

Somehow he managed to sneak back through the cafeteria, stopping at Jason’s room to tell his little brother it was time for dinner. They dropped off the copies in the band hall and were out the door to the parking lot before Jason started his interrogation.

“You’re really staying tonight for Lily? I thought she drove you nuts,” Jason asked as he opened the passenger door of Mike’s Camry.

“Shhhh!” Mike looked around the mostly empty parking lot, afraid of who might overhear their conversation. He slid into the driver’s seat before he answered, “we’re better now. Now that she actually puts some effort into my class. I think getting the lead in the play really helped her self esteem.”

“Hmmm,” Jason mused, looking at Mike’s spotless dash. With two toddlers, his mini-van was never as clean as Mike’s car stayed on a daily basis. “You still get this car detailed every weekend?”

“Of course,” Mike answered, as though it were the answer to the most obvious question in the world. “I like a clean car.”

“Your stuff is neurotically clean sometimes,” Jason muttered, swiping his finger over the console. He turned it over and inspected it. There wasn’t a trace of dust or dirt on his skin. “Nobody I know has a car this clean except for you.”

Mike shrugged. “What can I say. You think my house is too clean, too.” He pulled out of the parking lot to drive the mile and a half to the Mooya Burger Palace.

“It looks like nobody lives there, Mike. No personality,” Jason complained. “I’m just trying to get you to be interesting. Loosen up a bit.”

“I don’t want to be loose,” Mike said immediately, then shrugged again. “I don’t know, I might be interested in some change. I’ve been thinking of getting some artwork or something for the walls.”

“God, something with color, _please_ ,” Jason suggested. “I can go shopping with you, if you want an artistic set of eyes.” 

_I’m taking Chester shopping. Not that I can tell you that._ “Are we doing the drive through or going inside?” Mike asked instead, sidestepping Jason’s offer.

“Whatever your preference is,” Jason said. “You’re the picky one.”

Mike looked at his watch. “Let’s go inside. We have time, and I don’t want my car to smell like Mooya Burger,” he decided. “Then it would smell like your car. Stale french fries and spilled milkshakes.”

It was Jason’s turn to shrug. “Once you have kids, you’ll understand. Your whole world of cleanliness will be over, long gone with your germaphobic tendencies. You can’t have kids and be as clean as you are. It’s statistically improbable.”

“But not impossible,” Mike countered, laughing as Jason threw his hands up in surrender.

They somehow made it through their burgers and fries, engaging in small talk about Jason’s kids and wife, before he looked critically at Mike. “You never said if you wanted an opinion or not. On artwork. I think you _should_ get something to spice things up a bit. You’ve been in a rut ever since-”

“Don’t say it,” Mike threatened. “You sound just like Mom.” He sat back, exasperated. “Why does it always come back to Brad?” He started to push his hand through his hair before he remembered it was still styled for the day, and he was going back to school. He settled for running his hand down the side of his face, then cupping the back of his neck. “It’s not always about him.”

“I know that, Mike. We’ve just been worried about you. Though just the fact that you’ve been coming over for the family dinner again is a good sign. You’ve been better the last few months. We just want you to stay better,” Jason added, sucking down the last of his strawberry milkshake. 

Mike wanted to confide in his brother, tell him exactly why things were better. Fear of losing his job kept his mouth shut though. At the end of the day, Jason was his department chair, and telling him about Chester might end with Jason telling Mr. Hahn about the father of his students being the object of his schoolboy crush. _It’s not a crush. It’s mutual. And it’s more than a crush. He’s into me, too._

“I’m fine. I don’t even think about Brad anymore,” Mike lied, pushing his chair back and gathering up his trash. “Come on. I want to get back before someone parks in my spot.”

Jason hesitated for a moment, watching his brother. He’d always known when Mike was hiding something, and all the signs were there right now. The fidgeting. The way he avoided eye contact. The matter-of-fact way of deflecting additional conversation. “Right. I know how much that pisses you off,” Jason finally said, tossing his wrapper and empty cup into the waste bin. He didn’t say anything else, just followed Mike out to the car, ready to get back to school and get the evening over with, even though he’d miss his girl’s bedtime for the second time in the week. 

Mike didn’t talk on the short ride back to school. He was occupied with thoughts of shopping with Chester, of decorating with Chester, of holding Chester’s hand and asking his opinion about this and that. It was incredible the pull he felt toward the other man. He didn’t remember it ever being that way with Brad, that ‘click’ that he felt with Chester a very new experience. It was thrilling and scary, but that didn’t stop Mike from wondering what Chester might be wearing to the play, and if he’d get to talk to him, even briefly. 

Jason didn’t interrupt his thoughts, and Mike was very much on autopilot as he navigated back to McArthur. His parking spot was still available, and he and Jason went back into the school through the exterior band hall door. On his way past the office he stopped and got them both a peppermint, passing one off to Jason as they started down to the cafeteria. Now that the play was about to start, he was anxious to see Chester, and hyper-aware that he had to be calm and act as though they didn’t know each other’s preference for underwear and what scent of cologne they wore. That they didn’t know each other’s relationship histories, or favorite movies. That they didn’t talk for hours every night and that Mike wasn’t sleep deprived from the teenage joy of it all. 

The moment Mike stepped into the dimmed cafeteria with Jason, he remembered why he hated going to school events that were not band concerts. At his concerts, it was obvious he was busy. Parents didn’t stop him to make small talk or ask questions, because he was trying to put on a performance. But being the band director at a theater production opened up the door for anyone and everyone to come talk to him. 

Jason was already rows away, shaking hands and smiling charmingly at parents. Mike found himself suddenly surrounded by students he’d seen just hours earlier, with parents who were smiling indulgently. He had just turned to greet the next student waiting on him when Lila Bennington stepped up next to him, holding her mother’s hand.

Mike quickly smiled in her direction before he wished his clarinet player Morgan luck with the lighting he was in charge of for the play. Morgan scampered off with a serious and determined face to get started on his job, and Mike turned to Talinda Bennington with a smile.

“Ms. Bennington, it’s nice to see you again.” Mike reached to shake her hand as Lila started talking animatedly.

“Mom! Mr. Shinoda came to see Lily in the play, didn’t you, Mr. Shinoda? He told Lily he’d come see her, and here he is. I think he should sit with us! Mr. Shinoda, will you come sit with us? My dad got us the best seats, right up in the front where we can see Lily the best. You can sit next to my dad, okay?” Lily’s hands were motioning to the front of the cafeteria, and Mike’s eyes followed her gesture. He scanned the front row until he found the back of Chester’s head, and his heart fluttered at the sight of the short brown curls.

“Lila, Mr. Shinoda probably wants to sit with the other teachers,” Talinda offered, and Mike’s attention snapped back to her face. She looked tired and stressed, and Mike could almost understand why the girls lived with Chester instead of their mother. Talinda didn’t look as though she could handle one more thing on her plate than she already had. 

“I don’t mind, Ms. Bennington, I’d love to sit with you guys. I want Lily to see that I came,” he added with a half-smile. “I’m sure she thought I wouldn’t.”

“Oh, no,” Lila said. “She’s been talking about it all week. That all of her teachers were going to be here, even you. She says she can get her teachers to do anything.” Lila rolled her eyes. “She’s got a huge ego right now, Mr. Shinoda.” 

“Lila, be nice. This is a big deal for your sister,” Talinda admonished, then looked at Mike. “Lily thinks she’s already able to control a room full of people at the tender age of twelve. I have no idea where she got that kind of assertiveness from.” Talinda rolled her eyes with a feisty smile, her entire demeanor relaxing from just moments earlier.

Mike _almost_ commented, “I heard she’s a lot like you” but clamped his mouth shut at the last second, realizing that Talinda’s follow up question would want to know who told him that, and then he’d have to admit to talking to Chester. Instead he looked at his watch and then at Lila. “We probably should go find our seats, don’t you think? The play is supposed to start at seven o’clock.” _If Dave is punctual. I hope he’s punctual, I hate it when people start programs late._

Lila chirped out her agreement, and Mike followed her up the center aisle. He could feel Talinda behind him as he got closer and closer to Chester. _I’ve got to calm down. I’m going to give us away if I’m not careful. I wonder if the girls are going home with him or their mom after the play. I wonder if he’d want to go grab a cup of coffee or something._

“Dad! Look, I found Mr. Shinoda!” Lila shouted, bouncing down the aisle toward Chester. “Do we have an extra seat? Can he sit with us?” 

Chester stood up to let Lily pass by, and his eyes locked onto Mike. “Sure, sweetheart. Unless he wants to sit with the other teachers,” Chester added as Mike’s cheeks heated under his gaze. _God, look at him. He looks good enough to eat, right here in the this middle school cafeteria. Fuck._ He pulled his good sense together and reached toward Mike. “Mr. Shinoda. It’s good to see you again,” Chester said with a toothy grin as they shook hands. He tried not to let his hand linger over Mike’s, but the contact of Mike’s warm touch was too welcome after two weeks of only texts and phone calls. 

“Mr. Bennington. Always a pleasure,” Mike responded carefully, sliding a quick glance over Chester’s dark gray shirt and black jeans. _And those boots. I love those lace up boots._ “I wouldn’t want to impose, of course. If you have room for me, I can sit here.” He gestured to the empty seat that was two away from Chester. 

“It’s no imposition at all. I see you’ve found my darling ex-wife,” Chester added, watching Mike scoot past him and sit down with Lila in the seat between them. He turned to kiss Talinda’s cheek quickly before she sat down with an empty chair between them. “And this chair is for?” he asked as Mike looked on curiously.

“My mom,” Talinda answered. “You didn’t think she’d miss this, did you?” She set her giant black purse down under her chair and patted over her long wavy black hair. It was obvious where most of the twins’ features had come from. Lily was almost an exact image of Talinda with her black hair and almond shaped eyes, straight nose and high cheekbones. Lila had the same black hair, but softer cheeks and rounder eyes. Mike was pleased he could see the differences in their looks now. 

Chester shook his head as Lila exclaimed, “Abuelita is coming? Dad, switch places with me! I want to sit next to her,” she begged, popping up from her chair. “Pleeeeease?” She clasped her hands together in front of her chin and put on her best pleading puppy dog eyes.

“Absolutely, sweetheart,” he responded, shifting over a chair without a second thought, as though he’d been waiting to be invited into Mike’s personal space.

Mike felt his pulse quicken as Chester’s thigh touched his. The chairs were so close together that two grown men were bound to invade each other’s space, but it seemed deliberate that Chester had moved so far to the left in his chair that Mike could feel the body heat through his black jeans. He couldn’t help but quickly pull in a deep breath, and was instantly embarrassed at the low chuckle from Chester immediately after he did so.

The air between them felt electric. Every so often, a shift in the way one of them was sitting caused their elbows to brush together, or their knees to touch. Mike barely registered the lights dimming and the start of the play, the hushing of children’s voices and the beeps of recording devices being started. All he could think about was Chester Bennington sitting so close to him that he could _feel_ him. 

_He’s literally right there. Touching me. Our legs are touching. Our arms are touching. He’s doing it on purpose. He has to be. We haven’t even kissed yet. I want to kiss him. I want to see what other tattoos he’s hiding. I want to smell that place where his neck meets his shoulder and touch the skin on his back and I want to know what his hands feel like in my hair. Oh, wow, this play started a while ago. I love the Scarecrow. Damn, I should be paying attention to this play! But it’s impossible with him right here. Right here!_

Mike shifted in his seat to create a tiny space between their legs, and not ten seconds later, Chester closed that space again. He felt his cheeks blush as excitement coursed through his veins. The body contact was undeniably deliberate, but they were in a middle school cafeteria. His students were there. His boss. And three seats away sat Chester’s ex-wife, with his ex-mother-in-law in between. He breathed in another slow, deep breath and tried to concentrate on Lily Bennington delivering her lines expertly instead of what he wanted to do to her father.

There was a brief intermission, which Lila was filling with animated chatter to her grandma and parents, when Mike felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out to see a text from Jason.

**Jay:** _You’re looking cozy up there. Who are you sitting with?_

Mike tilted his phone screen away from Chester’s sight and tried to type a response without drawing attention to what he was doing.

**Mike:** _Cozy? Dave’s got these seat too close together._

**Jay:** _That’s not what I asked._

Twisting around in his seat, Mike searched for his brother at the back of the cafeteria. He spotted him, sitting in a row with the other department chairs, and his principal. Joe Hahn was immediately to Jason’s left, and Mike turned around quickly before they made eye contact. He knew he should put more space between himself and Chester, but every time he moved, Chester moved a little more into his space. It was a losing battle.

**Mike:** _The Benningtons. Lila wanted me to sit with her family._

**Jay:** _You’re such a softie all of a sudden._ Jason’s message was delivered with an eye roll emoji, and Mike shook his head. He was about to put his phone away when a new text bubble popped up with Chester’s name on it. A grin stretched over his face as he ducked his head and tapped the screen.

**Chester:** _What are you doing after this?_

It took every ounce of self-control Mike had not to type “you” into his message back.

**Mike:** _I was going to ask you that. Isn’t it your weekend without the girls?_

Mike could only laugh at himself, at the ridiculous fact that he was sitting in a middle school cafeteria acting like a middle schooler. He always made fun of his kids in the morning before school for sitting in the band hall and texting the friend sitting right next to them instead of just talking to them. Now he was doing the exact thing he teased them about.

**Chester:** _It is, but the family is going for ice cream to celebrate afterwards. If it’s not too late, and doesn’t impose on your beauty sleep, we should grab a bite after._

The cafeteria lights dimmed again, signaling the start of the second act, as Mike fired off a response.

**Mike:** _I’d love to. You can swing by and pick me up after ice cream._

**Chester:** _Perfect._

For the rest of the second act, Mike’s heart was beating so loudly he was sure Chester could hear it. Every time he shifted in his seat, Chester shifted with him, and when Mike dared to glance his way, he could see the amused smile on Chester’s face. _He’s so doing this on purpose! I hope they eat ice cream fast. I don’t even care where we go, I just want to go. Anywhere where we can be alone._ The energy flowing between them was almost palpable.

By the time the play was over, and Lily danced into Chester’s waiting arms for a hug, Mike could hardly sit still. He congratulated Lily on a spectacular performance, complimented her glittery red shoes, and was ready to shoo them all out of the cafeteria so he’d be that much closer to his secret date with Chester. 

They made eye contact as Mike bid them all good night, Chester’s eyes darker in the muted lights of the cafeteria than usual. Mike found it hard to breathe and quickly looked away, congratulating Lily again before he made his escape, managing to avoid conversation with Dave by simply waving to the theater teacher while he was surrounded by parents. His mind was blazing forward to the rest of the evening. _I need to shower before Chester picks me up. And change. He looks amazing and I look like… a teacher._ He wrinkled his nose and looked down at himself as he hurried down the hallway, oblivious to everyone else.

“Mike!”

He heard Jason holler his name down the fine arts hallway, and he skidded to a stop, turning to see his brother hurrying his way. “What’s up?”

“A bunch of us are going to go over to Morton’s for a drink, you want to go?” Jason asked, momentarily stunning Mike with his request.

Mike Shinoda was not known for going out with people from work. He and Rob had beers on occasion, and dinner every once in a while, but that was the extent of it. Everyone knew he kept to himself and stayed out of the work related drama. “I, um, well, Jay, you know I don’t really do that,” he stuttered, falling back on what he knew was an accepted personality quirk instead of telling Jason he already had plans.

“Mike, you _never_ do anything fun. Come on, what else do you have to do? Go home to Lexie? The guys are fun, and I’m buying a round in Dave’s honor. Just one drink, Mike, a _free_ one.”

“Why the hard sell?” Mike asked irritably. “I told you I don’t normally do that, and you already know that. I don’t want to go.” He turned to continue his walk to the band hall, to escape, his mind on getting home and getting ready for Chester.

“Fine,” Jason called after him. “At some point, Mike, you’re gonna have to start living again. Meet people and all that!” 

Mike waved him off without turning around. “Stop getting in my business, Jay! I’ll see you Sunday!” He left his brother standing in the hallway as he disappeared into the sanctuary of his room. Flipping off the lights, he was about to walk outside when his phone vibrated. Anxiously, he pulled it out of his pocket, hoping it was Chester.

He wasn’t disappointed.

**Chester:** _One hour, Mike, and don’t make me wait. Decide where you want to go. Somewhere private. I’m tired of waiting._

Mike dropped his car keys in his haste and surprise, and stood looking at his phone. _I’m tired of waiting. Well, me, too, Chester Bennington._ He scooped his keys off the ground and practically ran to his car, simultaneously trying to figure out what to wear and where to go. He only had one hour to decide.

****  
TBC


	7. The Big Conversation

Lexie sat on Brad’s vanity, her tail swishing slowly side to side as she watched Mike in the bathroom. He’d tossed his keys on the kitchen counter and run upstairs without even stopping to pet her, and she was letting him know how offended she was with his atypical behavior. After batting his keys off into the floor, she scampered upstairs to weave her way around his feet as he stood in the closet, debating clothes. He’d finally banished her from the closet, and she was giving him the cat sassy-eye from her perch on the vanity. 

“Lex, don’t get your feelings all hurt,” he said, unbuttoning his dress shirt and letting it drop to the floor. His pants were next, and he kicked everything into a pile next to the hamper. _I’ll pick that up if I have time._ “I don’t have much time!” he told her excitedly. “I have to decide where to go, and I can’t go in work clothes. It’s like… it’s like our third date, Lexie.” Mike stopped taking off clothes and looked at his cat, who promptly turned her head away from him and started cleaning her left paw, as though the conversation was boring her. “I want to kiss him, Lex,” he whispered, “and I know that’s what he meant. He’s tired of waiting. Well, so am I. I know I told him we couldn’t become anything real until the end of the school year, but… it’s so far away.”

Mike looked in the mirror and thought about that whispered conversation of rules and caution. They’d agreed to wait for the school year to dissolve into summer break before they pursued anything serious, but the text messages and conversations were heading someplace a whole lot more serious than either of them intended. And now there was a third date.

There was a definite sparkle in his eyes and Mike was struck by the the smile across his lips. He couldn’t deny the excitement he was feeling at the thought of the third date. _A third date that feels like so much more._ He lifted his arm and sniffed his undershirt, then decided with his heart racing that he absolutely did need a quick shower. 

Throwing a towel over the shower door, he started the water and shed his undershirt and boxers. His phone on the counter told him he couldn’t waste time- he had barely more than a half hour to shower and get dressed. He was efficient with his shower - a dime sized drop of shampoo, a quarter sized squirt of body wash, and he was out, patting himself dry and humming the concert march his kids were learning in band. 

In ten more minutes he was dressed, his teeth brushed, and hat on instead of styling his hair again. _And I’m less recognizable in a hat. If we happen to run into any students, maybe they wouldn’t notice me. They never see me in a hat._ Mike looked in the mirror, assessing his army green t-shirt, black jacket, and dark jeans. _It’s perfect for coffee. Unassuming. Besides, if I have to try that hard to get him to look at me, something’s not right._ Satisfied, he flipped off the lights and trotted down the stairs with a bounce in his step. 

Mike glanced around the living space. It was as neat and tidy as ever, but he walked around the downstairs anyway, making sure that everything was appropriately in place. Lexie watched with lazy disinterest from the back of the couch as Mike fluffed throw pillows and folded his gray and white checked blanket. “Lex, you better be on your best behavior,” he said to the cat as he spotted his keys on the floor. “See, Mike, this is why they go on the hook and not the counter,” he mumbled to himself before he raised his voice to the cat. “Don’t make a mess while I’m gone.” 

As he scooped the keys off the floor the doorbell rang, and his entire demeanor changed instantly from annoyance to anticipation. With a deep breath he made his way to the front door, adjusted his hat, and opened it up. “Hey!” His voice was bright and excited, and he internally rolled his eyes at himself. _God, Mike, calm down the eagerness._

Chester was fidgeting with his phone when Mike opened the door, but instantly shoved it in his pocket as soon as he heard Mike’s voice. “Hey, Mike.” He scanned Mike from hat to shoes and back up, locking eyes. “Thanks for waiting on me, I know I’m a few minutes later than I said.”

“You’re fine. Family time is important,” Mike said, scooting over to let Chester come inside. “You want to come in?”

“Not if you’re ready to go,” Chester answered, sliding a finger through the air at Mike’s clothes. 

“Yeah! Sure, let me just turn off these lights…” Mike twisted around and flipped the two switches that plunged the living room and entryway into darkness. “Okay. Let’s go.” He stepped out of the house and locked the door behind him, feeling Chester’s eyes on him from behind. “I was thinking I wanted pancakes. And I know you’ve just had ice cream, but you can get coffee and-”

“There’s an iHop down the interstate,” Chester interrupted as Mike started down the sidewalk. His eyes slipped to Mike’s ass and he grinned. “If you’re worried about someone seeing us. I’m willing to drive a bit.” They rounded the corner of the walkway that lead past the garage and to the driveway, and Chester heard Mike’s audible gasp of surprise. “I’m always willing to drive this baby around a little bit.”

Mike stopped to look over the classic car sitting in his driveway. He knew that Chester drove an older black Jeep Cherokee. He’d seen it when the girls left from their Tuesday flute tutorial, so he wasn’t expecting the candy apple red ’68 Mustang that Chester was opening the passenger door to while he stood there and stared. “Wow! You never told me you had this!” he said in awe, looking at the flawless paint and the black racing stripes down the center. “This car is amazing!”

Chester was chuckling at Mike’s reaction to the car. “Yeah, this is my one and only vice. A friend of mine restores cars and when he got this one up and running, I had to have it. No kids allowed in here,” he added, looking at the spotless interior. “And I only drive it when it’s not gonna rain. She lives in my garage, all snug and warm, most of the time.”

“She’s a beauty,” Mike said, walking around to the back of the car and looking it over. The chrome was perfect and shiny, and there wasn’t a flaw to be seen. “I don’t blame you for wanting it.” He glanced back at Chester, who was beaming with pride. “If you’re okay with driving her that far, then let’s go. I can’t wait to see how she drives.” 

“Yeah, I only drive her with the girls are at Tal’s, so this is a nice treat. Go ahead and roll the window down,” Chester suggested as he shut the door behind Mike. He rounded the car and got in, rolling his window down and starting the car. “You ready?” he asked Mike, who was running his hands over the leather interior and looking at the dash.

“Absolutely. Man, I love a clean car,” Mike said, looking up at the roof and then over at the steering column. “Totally didn’t expect this, but I love it.” He settled back into the seat and let Chester navigate. It was a great night to have the windows down, and he was extra glad he’d put a hat on so he didn’t have to worry about his hair. Chester’s short brown curls weren’t even bothered by the wind.

They were out of Mike’s neighborhood and onto the freeway before Chester asked teasingly, “so what did you think of the play? Or were you even paying attention?”

“I was paying attention!” Mike exclaimed instantly, cringing at how defensive he sounded. “I mean, it was hard with you rubbing up on me the whole time, but, yeah, the play was good,” he managed, his cheeks blushing pink as he thought of Chester’s body heat right next to him throughout the whole play. If he were being honest, he really didn’t remember much about it, other than how reluctantly Chester moved away from him when it was over.

“You know, I wanted to do this,” Chester said, reaching over and taking Mike’s hand, pulling it over to rest between them. “I didn’t think you’d let me do that in the school cafeteria.”

Mike’s heart skipped a few beats as Chester’s fingers laced into his. “Um, no, no, I wouldn’t have,” he stammered, a shy grin creeping over his face. “Not with Lila right there.”

“And your principal,” Chester continued wisely. He focused on the road in front of him, and the feel of Mike’s hand in his, but every once in a while he snuck a peek at Mike’s face as he drove. _He’s adorable. And damn if he doesn’t look fine sitting in my passenger seat. I could get used to seeing him sitting there on the weekends. Or more than the weekends. I know we agreed to wait, but… I’m dying to kiss him._

“This car is absolutely beautiful,” Mike commented after a while, interrupting Chester’s thoughts. “I’ve always had a thing for classic cars, but… I guess the practical side of me knew it wasn’t financially responsible for me to have two cars.” He shrugged as he looked over at Chester. “Teacher salary.” 

“Insurance discount,” Chester offered by way of explanation. “My friend sold it to me at cost, so, you know… it worked out. But I’m glad you like it. I don’t let just anyone ride in it, you know.” 

Mike smiled, looking out the passenger window. “Too bad we’re already here. I was enjoying the ride.” He felt a sting in his heart as Chester pulled his hand away to carefully park the car with both hands on the steering wheel. 

“Me, too,” Chester agreed. “But now, it’s pancake time. Well, for you. I’m thinking french toast, myself. Despite the ice cream. There’s nothing like breakfast food at ten o’clock at night.” He flashed Mike a grin as they walked into iHop. “I haven’t eaten in one of these in years.”

“Same,” Mike said. They followed the waitress to a booth in the corner, and Mike took the side facing away from the rest of the restaurant. It was a bit of a relief, knowing that he really wasn’t visible the way he was sitting. He didn’t even pick up the menu. He already knew what he wanted, so he spent the time studying Chester instead. The dark grey shirt fit snugly over his biceps, and across his pecs, and Mike couldn’t help but start to imagine the skin and muscle hiding under that fabric. The gorgeous flame tattoos he loved were on full display, the colors vivid against Chester’s skin and the backdrop of the dark t-shirt. He was enjoying the view as Chester read the menu, and quickly averted his eyes when Chester looked up at him. 

“French toast for sure,” he said, glancing over at the four syrup carafes on the table where Mike’s eyes had landed. Strawberry, maple, butter pecan, and blueberry. It was always a hard choice, but French toast made it easier. _Butter pecan all the way. I wonder which syrup Mike likes?_ Chester pointed a finger over at the line of syrup. “Ok, this is the true test of compatibility. There’s four different syrups, and each one goes with a different item. French toast, pancakes, waffles, and crepes. Which syrup goes with which item?” He sat back and watched as Mike’s eyes lit up with the challenge.

“There’s only one correct way to do that,” Mike said seriously. He held up his hand, his long fingers showing the number one. “First, French toast is amazing with butter pecan. All the way. Second,” he ticked off his mental list and added another finger, “waffles and blueberry syrup are the bomb.” He nodded to himself, watching Chester’s eyes crinkle in amusement. “Third,” throwing up another finger in a w shape, “pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream can _only_ have strawberry syrup on them.”

“Strawberries and whipped cream?” Chester wiggled his eyebrows. “Sounds kinky.”

Mike blushed but didn’t let Chester distract him. He put up his fourth finger and pointed them all at Chester. “And fourth, crepes are delicate. The only kind of crepes you should put syrup on are plain ones, with a dusting of powdered sugar, and a drizzle of maple syrup. Or honey,” he added thoughtfully, licking his bottom lip.

Chester’s attention went directly to Mike’s lips when his tongue made a brief appearance. _Shit. Look at him. Look at his lips. I don’t think I can stop myself anymore. I don’t want to. I need to kiss him. He needs to be kissed._ “That’s a very passionate argument for the maple,” Chester said, stopping as their waitress came to get their order.

They’d just started their evening, but Chester had things on his mind he was anxious to address in person. It had been two weeks since they’d had dinner at Mike’s, with everything else limited to phone calls and texts, and what he wanted to talk about couldn’t be done that way. He wanted to see Mike’s face. He wanted to read the nuance there that he couldn’t get over the phone.

Chester watched Mike order his coffee, and pancakes with extra strawberries and whipped cream with a sly glance his way before he got his French toast ordered, and another coffee. Chester sat back in his bench seat after he passed the waitress the menu and took a deep breath. The syrup discussion had been cute, but he knew want he wanted to talk about, and as he’d stated earlier, he was tired of waiting. 

Chester fiddled with his rolled up silverware as he said cautiously, “I wanted to talk about that text I sent, about waiting… I know what we talked about, Mike, about waiting and being careful and all that, but I need to tell you something.” He looked up and caught Mike’s dark eyes watching him closely. “Once I know what I want, I can be a pretty impatient guy.”

Mike nodded, licking his bottom lip again. “I am, too,” he admitted, wiping his palms on his jeans under the table, hoping Chester didn’t notice. “But you know we can’t just… start openly dating.” He looked around the dining room as though his principal or his brother, or Rob, would pop out at any moment. “It has nothing to do with wanting to, because… I really, really want to. But there’s work… and… I mean… do your girls even know…” he trailed off, unsure how to ask, _do your girls even know you like men?_

Chester snorted softly. “You’re not the first guy I’ve dated, Mike. They know.” He watched Mike shift on the bench, and though he worried that he might have made Mike feel uncomfortable, he plunged ahead. “I mean, it’s not like I’m taking you home to them this weekend or anything. But… before I take this any further, there’s something I have to know.”

 _Any further… oh my god, are we really talking about this? Is this the kind of conversation people have over pancakes? About going further? We haven’t even kissed yet! Well, maybe he means kissing. But who talks about kissing! We do, because I keep saying we have to wait. Fuck waiting. I’m ready._ Mike took a deep breath and calmly said, “okay, shoot. What’s on your mind, Chester?” He was proud of how calm and unaffected he sounded.

Chester peeled the paper loop holding the napkin around his silverware loose and twisted it around his thumb. “I have to know, if eventually you’re going to be okay with that.” There it was, the big question, and they didn’t even have coffee yet. “With my girls,” he clarified as Mike looked at him quizzically. “Or if this is just… a casual thing for you.” He took a hard swallow and rushed on, “I mean, I don’t know what you’re thinking, or if you’re really over Brad, or if my kids are something that would keep us from being something… _more_ … eventually.”

Mike was silent, processing everything Chester had just said. It wasn’t what he expected, and it threw him for a second. Up until now, their exchanges had been mostly lighthearted, even tonight with the car and syrup talk. Sure, they’d discussed their exes and some heavier things, but there hadn’t been any discussion about the future, what that might look like with Chester’s twins in the picture and Mike’s carefully constructed child-free life. He was about to open his mouth when Chester went on quietly.

“I know that’s a lot to throw at you at once. But I’m a single dad, Mike. With primary custody. Do you know how unusual that is?” He dropped the paper wrapper, then crossed his arms over his chest and hugged himself as he spoke. “My kids come first. And… I can see this getting serious, Mike. I think about you all the time, and I want to be with you when I’m working, or when I’m making dinner, or when I’m watching tv at night after you go to sleep. Which is a crazy thing to admit.” Chester exhaled a disbelieving sigh and flashed Mike - who was looking at him with wide eyes - a half-grin. “I’d never want to get into something that wasn’t going to go anywhere, that could potentially hurt my girls. There’s a reason I haven’t ever brought anyone home to them. The divorce was tough, then the reality that I was dating men had to be addressed, and it’s just been a lot. You know how they are. Lila is so much more accepting than Lily. She’s more fragile than she lets on.” 

“She does need more affirmation than Lila,” Mike said carefully, saved from saying more by the appearance of their coffee. They both reached for their mugs at the same time, and Mike was amused to see that they both wrapped their hands around the handle and the mug, holding it the same way. He lifted an eyebrow and looked pointedly at their hands. “We have so much in common, you know… I would never let the girls get in the way of something good. If anything, I’ve wondered what they would think of _me_ dating their dad. It’s no secret Lily didn’t like me much most of the year. I’m still not sure if she does.” He lifted his mug and took a sip of the steaming coffee, not meeting Chester’s gaze.

“I think she’s coming along,” Chester said softly, though he was actually unsure. “I mean, coming to the play was big. I know that really meant something to her.”

“I want her to like me,” Mike said, suddenly feeling vulnerable. He usually didn’t care if students liked him or not. He was there to be their teacher, not their friend. But there was more at stake with Lily Bennington, and Chester had just drawn a line in the sand. His kids were first, and that meant Mike was going have to make sure that Lily accepted him.

Chester reached across the table, laying his hand warmed by the coffee mug on Mike’s forearm. “We’ll go slow, Mike. I swear, I’m not trying to rush things. I know you’ve got reason to be cautious, and so do I. But there’s also no reason to deny ourselves another few months, especially without talking about this, you know? I just need to hear you say that my girls aren’t a deal breaker. I’ve sacrificed a lot for them, and I wouldn’t hesitate to walk out the door right now if you told me you wouldn’t accept them into your life along with me. I’m not asking for a commitment right now, but I’ve dated men who didn’t want kids, and I’ve learned that there’s really just no reason to pursue a relationship like that. If you know for certain it’s not going to work out, why bother? I’d hate to dance around things just to find out you don’t want kids or something.” 

Mike took another long drink of coffee as he contemplated telling Chester that he’d never thought before that he wanted kids. _But Chester’s kids, they’re older. It wouldn’t be the constant demand of an infant or a toddler, and I’d just be the step-dad. Whoa. We haven’t even kissed and I’m thinking about being the step-dad. Just calm down, Mike. All he’s asking is if the girls would be a deal breaker, and they aren’t. They wouldn’t be. I won’t let them be._ Mike looked up at the concern on Chester’s face, and his heart ached with desire. _He’s just doing what he thinks is right, laying it all out there like this. I respect that._

He set his mug down and then covered Chester’s hand with his own. “I’m not saying no to kids, someday,” Mike said quietly. “It’s a scary thought, I have to admit. Especially when you and I aren’t… well, it’s just the third date.” 

Chester sat back, his face lighting up with amusement. “So you admit that coffee date was a date. I told you it was,” he pointed out.

The heavy atmosphere of their conversation lifted immediately, and Mike couldn’t help but answer Chester’s grin with his own. The man’s smile was contagious. “Yeah, it was a date,” he agreed. “You were right.”

“Of course I was,” Chester said, picking up his napkin and silverware so that their waitress who had suddenly appeared could place his French toast in front of him. “Oh, and you were so right about the butter pecan. That’s the _only_ way to have French toast.” He reached for both his selection and Mike’s, sliding the strawberry syrup across the table into Mike’s waiting hand.

“Thanks.” 

They both set about adding the right amount of syrup to their dinner/breakfast plates, and Mike looked across the table to see a pool of syrup on Chester’s plate that matched his own. “We’re both going to be on a sugar high after this,” he decided, setting down the carafe. “It’s awfully late for this much sweetness.”

Chester was already a bite in, his eyes closed in bliss. “It’s been forever since I had French toast at night. I think breakfast at night is so much better than in the morning. You’re actually awake to enjoy it.” He looked at Mike as he cut off another piece with the side of his fork. “This was an excellent idea.” 

Mike nodded, his mouth full of pancakes. _Sometimes I have good ideas. Anything that gets me in the same room as you is a good idea._

They continued eating and making small talk, laughing at each other’s jokes while the number of patrons in the restaurant dwindled down as it got closer to midnight. Mike finished the last of his third cup of coffee and glanced at his watch. Lexie’s fluffy face stared back at him, and he felt a little guilty for leaving her alone all day.

“It’s getting late,” Chester commented when he saw Mike look at his watch. “It’s a good two hours past Mike Shinoda’s bedtime.” They both reached for the check at the same time, but Chester was quicker. “I’ve got it, Mike.”

“But you got the coffee,” Mike protested immediately, but Chester waved him off. 

“I asked you out, it’s on me.” He smiled at the waitress as she took his card, and he looked back at Mike. “I’ve enjoyed this a lot. Thanks for coming out with me after such a long day.”

Mike pondered telling Chester that he wasn’t anywhere close to being tired. It was exhilarating being in the other man’s company, but he held back. Even though they’d been talking for over a month, even though they’d just had a very serious discussion about Chester’s kids, he didn’t want to be pushy, or overeager. “I’m glad we did this,” he said instead, letting the brilliant smile on his face speak for itself. 

They rolled down the windows and turned up the radio on the way back to Mike’s, the cool night air hitting them both in the face as they drove. Being with Chester was fun, and Mike was sorry that the night was ending. _I’ve got to think of something for tomorrow. I want to see him again. All this waiting two weeks to see him next is driving me insane. I’m tired of waiting. Hmmm. Shopping. We talked about going shopping that one time. I need artwork! He won’t say no to that, will he?_

This time it was Mike that reached over, running his fingers up Chester’s flames and gently pulling his hand from the steering wheel. His breath caught in his lungs as Chester looked over at him, a soft smile on his face, and allowed Mike to twine their fingers together. “So I was thinking…” Mike started, letting his voice trail off.

“Hold on,” Chester said, taking his hand from Mike’s grip and turning down the radio. Immediately his hand was back in Mike’s, with a reassuring squeeze. “Okay. You were thinking?”

Mike nodded. “I was wondering if you were up for a little shopping tomorrow. Maybe being the second opinion in the acquisition of some new artwork for my walls?” He bit his bottom lip as he looked at Chester, his face barely illuminated by the dash lights.

“Mmm, weekend plans,” Chester hummed. “I like it. I want to see you again, too. And I’m always up for shopping. Got ideas on where you want to go?”

“There’s some places,” Mike said vaguely. “I’ll have a plan by tomorrow afternoon. How does that sound? A little shopping, and then I can make dinner at my place.” His voice shook a little as he suggested dinner. _Is that too forward? Too soon? Shit._ “Or we can go out,” he amended before Chester could respond.

“Let’s see how shopping goes. If you’re one of those indecisive types and it takes forever, we’ll just have to eat out.” Chester laughed, pulling on Mike’s hand. “I can’t imagine you being the indecisive type, Mikey.”

Mike’s ears perked up. _Mikey? That sounds a whole hell of a lot like a pet name. A pet name. Are we already at pet name stage? We haven’t even kissed yet!!_ “I usually know a good thing when I see it,” Mike answered, his heart thumping in his chest. “I’ll also make sure you don’t starve or anything.”

“Thank goodness. Food is important,” Chester said seriously, managing the turns into Mike’s neighborhood with one hand. _I hate that this is over. I hate that I’m dropping him off. It’s so soon, but I just want to be with him all the time. That means something, right? Does he feel it too? He took my hand, he must feel it too. I’m going to kiss him. I have to kiss him._ Chester cleared his throat as he gently pulled his hand from Mike’s. “Well… here we are.” He gestured to the front of Mike’s townhome. The lights were off on his neighbors side, just a porch light for each side lighting up the area. He turned the car off and reached for the door handle. “I’ll walk you to the door. Don’t want you to get stolen or anything.”

Mike smiled as he got out of the car. It was such a sweet thing to do, to walk him to the door. _Maybe he’s going to kiss me. I wish I had a reason to invite him in, but we just had coffee. It’s late anyway. But I want him to stay. God, I want him to stay._

He made his way up the sidewalk with Chester close behind. Mike turned his head slightly and murmured, “I’d invite you in for coffee, but… we sort of just had some.” They got to the door and he turned, looking at Chester in the porch light with a grin. 

Chester felt a nervous twist in his stomach as he looked at the way Mike’s eyes sparkled in the overhead light now that his hat was backwards. _When did he turn his hat around backwards??_ “And it’s late,” he affirmed, “and I’ll see you tomorrow. We’ve got a shopping date, and I know you need your beauty sleep.” He watched the pink flush come to Mike’s cheeks and wondered how it was that the strict-as-hell band director was so easily flustered by his words. 

“Goodnight, Chester,” Mike said, letting a beat pass between them before he dug in his pocket for his keys. _I wish he’d kiss me. I wish he could read me and tell that’s what I want. I want him to take control._ He fumbled with the keys, trying to get his house key into his hand to unlock the door and not let his disappointment show. _Tomorrow. There’s always tomorrow._

Just as he got the correct key, Chester reached out to stop his progress, his hand connecting with Mike’s forearm. There was a snap of static electricity, then the porch light over the door flickered and _POP!_ \- it plunged them into darkness. Mike felt Chester’s grip tighten as his low chuckle filled the tight space between them. 

“I don’t know what’s with us and static electricity,” Chester murmured, “but it has to be a sign or something.”

“Do you believe in signs?” Mike asked breathily, hoping that this was it, that the sign Chester saw was leading to something he’d been dying to do since the first moment he laid eyes on Chester Bennington in the parent-teacher conference two months ago.

Their eyes adjusted to the darkness, the faint light from the street lamp casting shadows on their faces. “Mike, I…” Chester pinched his chin between his thumb and middle finger, tilting his head back ever so slightly, trying to look into his eyes. “This isn’t too fast, right? I feel like I know you so well, that we’ve talked so much, but there’s this one thing, one thing missing.” His voice was a light whisper as he leaned forward and so softly, so carefully, so lightly brushed his lips against Mike’s. “Tell me this isn’t too fast.” He waited, his breaths hot on the side of Mike’s mouth, for a reaction.

“It’s not,” Mike whispered back, the words causing his lips to touch Chester’s cheek in the non-existent space between them. He hesitated, waiting, his heart pounding in his ears, as Chester’s warm mouth, his soft lips, brushed over his a second time.

“I want you to be sure,” Chester husked, his lips touching Mike’s with each word.

Time felt suspended between them as their lips grazed each others, Chester’s light grip steady on Mike’s chin until Mike moved his hand to rest gently over Chester’s heartbeat, and they melted into the first kiss. 

Chester’s fingers slipped over Mike’s jawline and around the back of his neck, slowly bringing them closer together. Mike could feel the electricity in his fingertips as their lips moved together in a sweet, slow, dance that made his stomach flutter in anticipation. Under the cover of darkness, he curled his fingers into Chester’s shirt, and a small whimper escaped his throat as he let his lips part slightly, inviting Chester’s tongue to action.

All the restraint they’d both been using for months evaporated as Chester gently licked at Mike’s bottom lip, and Mike surrendered, pressing forward a little more and allowing Chester entrance, their tongues meeting in a gentle caress. There was nothing rushed about their connection, and Chester took his time exploring the warmth of Mike’s mouth and his perfect lips, feeling his facial hair softly tickle his skin. Mike felt his knees grow weak as the kiss lasted, Chester holding him so carefully close with no urgency, no demands. They took turns, soft licks and gentle suckles of each other, their tongues moving back and forth between slippery lips until Mike needed air, and though he hated to be the one to do it, he slowly pulled back, sighing as the night air rushed between their wet lips, their shared saliva cooling instantly.

Chester rested his forehead against Mike’s, his eyes closed as he caught his breath. “Damn, Mike,” he whispered, and he felt Mike’s fingers tighten their grip a little more on his shirt.

Mike was careful to keep his hips from coming into contact with Chester’s. _Slow! We’re taking this slow!_ but his pants were tighter than they had been minutes ago. The urge to reach down and adjust himself was excruciating, but he held back. “Yeah,” he whispered back, wanting more. _God, if our first kiss is that good, I can’t even imagine what getting him in bed will be like. No, Mike, stop! He’s going home and you’re going inside!_ “Damn.”

They stood for another few seconds on the porch before Chester relaxed his hold on Mike and took a half step away. “Go inside, Mike… or I’m going to have you up against this wall, right here on your front porch.” 

Mike breathed out a giggle as he let go of Chester’s shirt and stepped back, putting a little more space between them. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“Slow, Mikey. We agreed on slow.” _Even though it’s been forever and I want to be on my knees in front of you right now, we’re going to do this right, damn it!_ “Go on,” he insisted quietly, knowing if Mike hesitated any more, slow would be out the window.

With a sigh, Mike turned to the front door, unlocking it quickly. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Chester.” He looked back, resisting the urge to take Chester’s hand and pull him inside. “Good night.” Without a word, Chester blew him a kiss, and Mike shut the door, locking it immediately and then leaning against it in the darkness of the foyer.

Chester stood on the porch for a minute, staring at the front door. _I could knock. He’d open the door and I’d take him in my arms right then. There’d be no stopping it. I know he wants me. I can feel it. And fuck if I don’t want him, too. Don’t knock on the door, Chester. Go home. You’ll see him in twelve hours. Go home._

Mike heard when Chester’s car finally started, and only then did he notice how his hands were shaking. He pressed them to his cheeks, and a slow smile spread over his face. _He’s amazing. I’ve never been kissed like that before. God, I want him._ He finally allowed himself to reach down and adjust the partial erection that had made itself known, just from one kiss. _One kiss, and look at me. I’m his. Wow._

He didn’t even turn on the lights, moving though the house in the dark on his way upstairs. He didn’t know if he’d be able to fall asleep or not, with the taste of Chester’s kiss still on his lips, but he knew the faster he fell asleep, the sooner he’d see Chester again. 

In the dark, he stripped down to his underwear, the energy and arousal fading as fatigue washed over him, leaving his clothes in a puddle on the floor next to the bed as he slipped between the sheets. He didn’t even think about how he now had two piles of clothes that weren’t in the hamper laying on his floor. He didn’t think about how it was almost three hours past his bedtime, or how he hadn’t greeted Lexie when he came in. All he could think about, as he closed his eyes and waited for sleep to come, was the feel of Chester Bennington’s kiss. 

****  
TBC


	8. Netflix and Chill

The cell phone rang again from where it was still plugged in on Mike’s nightstand. It had just stopped ringing moments earlier. He decided it must be important, so he shucked off his rubber cleaning gloves and left them on the side of the bathtub as he hurried to grab it. _Maybe it’s Chester. I hope he’s not cancelling. Please, please don’t be Chester._

With a frustrated huff, he realized it was Jason. He swiped right and put the phone to his ear, brushing away the hair sticking to his sweaty forehead with the back of his hand. “What’s up?” he answered.

“Well aren’t you cheery this morning!” Jason’s voice was thinner over the iPhone.

“I’m cleaning, Jay. What’s up?” Mike said again, a little more irritably. He looked back toward the bathroom and his abandoned yellow gloves.

“I just got tickets to the Dodgers game this afternoon, and you’re coming with me. They’re great seats, right behind home plate.”

Mike sighed. “I can’t Jay. I’m, I’ve…” He scrambled for words, for some excuse that wasn’t telling him about Chester. “Lexie has a vet appointment,” he blurted out.

There was silence on the line, then, “really. Really, Mike? You’re giving up fifth row tickets to take your cat to the vet?”

_What a stupid excuse, damn, Mike. You couldn’t come up with anything better?_ “Well, yeah,” he mumbled. “I can’t cancel it, they charge you anyway if you try to do that on the same day. And I need refills on her flea stuff, I can’t have fleas, Jay.” He shifted back and forth on his feet, thinking of the long list of things he needed to clean, _just in case._ It wasn’t that Mike really thought Chester would end up staying over, but it couldn’t hurt to be prepared.

“Fine, I guess I can give Rob a call. Maybe he’ll be around.” Jason paused, then said, “you know, if you have other plans, Mike, you can just say so.”

Mike looked up, catching his own surprised face in the mirror. “Plans? Yeah, I’ve got plans with Lex. She needs to go to the vet.”

“Okay…” Jason’s voice was clearly skeptical, causing Mike to fidget back and forth on his feet uncomfortably. “Well, if you’re sure that’s all… I’ll go eat my ballpark hot dogs without you.”

“It’s not personal, Jay. You know me. Last minute plans are just not my thing. I love baseball, but it’s just not going to work today. You can tell me all about it at mom’s tomorrow.” Mike held his breath, hoping that Jason was finished. He knew his excuses were awful, but he wasn’t ready to talk about Chester yet.

“Fine. Don’t bail on tomorrow, Mike. I’ll see you then.”

Mike could hear the resignation in Jason’s voice. His brother was just trying to get him out of the house, and with the complication of keeping Chester a secret, there was no way for him to know that Mike had real, actual plans he didn’t want to cancel. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he affirmed, then ended the call. He stood for a minute, looking at his phone, then set it back on the nightstand. He had a bathroom to clean, so worries about Jason would have to wait until later.

With his rubber gloves back on, he finished the bathtub and shower, then the toilet. It never took him long to clean his space, since he was ridiculously neat from day to day, but Mike was being extra meticulous this morning. Every inch of the bathroom was sparkling when he ran his rag over the countertop one more time, looking up to make sure the mirror was spotless. 

As soon as he turned away from the sink, Lexie waltzed into the bathroom, her tail straight up with a quirk at the end, like a question mark. She sniffed the air, then shot Mike a look before she jumped up on the counter.

“Oh, come on, Lex, I just cleaned the counter!” Mike exclaimed, reaching for the cat. She allowed herself to be picked up, and Mike cuddled her close to his chest. “I know you hate the smell of cleaner,” he cooed soothingly, “but I’ll open up the windows, and it won’t be so bad. Let’s go.” He walked out into the bedroom, spying his clothes from last night on the floor still. “God, Mike, look at this place. One kiss and the whole house goes to hell.” He kicked the pile closer to the hamper as he scratched under Lexie’s chin and felt her purring. “Lexie-girl, I’m going to need you to start pulling your weight around here. Can you vacuum every once in a while?”

He let the cat jump down from his arms so he could open the windows and let the fresh air in to try to kill the smell of bathroom cleaner. _I have to get all the cleaner smell out before Chester comes over, anyway. I don’t want him to know I cleaned so hard._ Turning from the windows, he looked over the bedroom, which was next on his cleaning list. The bed was stripped and the sheets washed, and they were in the dryer now with a fabric softener sheet. He picked up yesterday’s clothes and tossed them in the hamper on top of the others he’d picked up from the bathroom, and eyed the dresser critically. _I need to dust. And then vacuum. And then the sheets should be ready._

Mike kept himself busy all morning and away from checking the clock, doing all the meticulous cleaning he usually did once a month. Baseboards, mopping, and dusting were completed, along with the bed being freshly made, before lunch. The windows were open as he finished cleaning the kitchen stove, and stood back to look at his work. The entire house was sparkling, and he felt his nervous stomach settle a little. No matter what happened, he was proud of his little townhome, and wanted Chester to be comfortable there. In his opinion, nothing was worse than being invited into someone’s house and have that house be a wreck.

Once he was satisfied with the state of things, he went back upstairs to shower and get ready to see Chester. Mike had a plan of where he wanted to go, and what he was looking for when it came to artwork. He had options for eating out, and all the fixings for tacos if he ended up cooking. He felt prepared for every possible scenario, but he still ran through all of them as he showered. A dime-sized drop of shampoo and a quarter-sized drop of body wash - as usual - and he was ready to get dressed.

_What do you wear on the first date after the first kiss when you’re shopping for wall art and can’t be seen by anyone you know?_ Mike shook his head at himself. _That kiss. How am I supposed to keep from kissing him the entire time we’re together? He even said last night if I didn’t go inside he’d have me up against the wall. The wall. Fuck, that’s hot. If he’s as passionate as I think he is… fuck._ Mike felt his insides clench in anticipation. It had been months since he’d thought about having sex with anyone, but with Chester, it didn’t seem like a matter of _if_ he was going to want to, but _when_ they’d both finally give in.

_Slow. We’re supposed to go slow,_ he reminded himself. He ran his hands over several shirts before he settled on a black t-shirt with red and silver splatters on it that looked like paint, and red numbers. It was one of his favorites, and with his jeans with the ripped knees that Rob hated, and his black Vans, he looked ready for a casual day. It was nothing like his band director persona. 

Mike smirked at himself as he got dressed. _If my kids only knew. I used to be pretty cool before I became a teacher._ He decided to forego the hat, just in case more kissing was in the stars, and carefully styled his hair into a little bit of a faux-hawk. Once he was satisfied with his appearance, he grabbed his phone and checked over the bedroom one more time on his way downstairs. The gray and white blanket was perfectly straight on top of freshly laundered sheets - complete with military precision corners. _Not that it will matter today… tonight… either way. But just. in. case._

Lexie was laying in a patch of sunshine when he got downstairs. Mike didn’t disturb her as he went to look out the window into his small backyard. There was a mosaic topped table and two chairs, an umbrella, and his grill on the back patio, surrounded by various pots and plants that he loved to tend on Sunday mornings. It was a tiny sanctuary in the non-stop activity of his work week, a place he could relax and enjoy a glass of wine and some fresh air. _I wonder if Chester has a big back garden. I wonder what his place is like… and how long it will be until I can see it. I wonder if it will be weird, going into his house knowing Lily and Lila live there, too. I’ve never had to think about that before._

He glanced at his watch right as Chester knocked on the front door, and a happy smile hit his face instantly. One of his favorite qualities in a person was punctuality, and so far, Chester had a perfect record.

Lexie scampered out of Mike’s way as he thoughtlessly walked right into her space on the way to the door. He felt his pockets for his keys and phone, and slid his sunglasses on before he opened it up, the bright smile still on his face. “Ready for some shopping?” he asked, stepping out and pulling the door shut behind him.

The smile on Chester’s face matched Mike’s. “Of course. I brought the Jeep, just in case you find something big you like.” 

Chester was leaning against the porch column, one ankle crossed over the other. Mike took the opportunity to stare from behind his sunglasses at the gray tank top and dark jeans Chester was wearing. “Yeah, I might find something big,” he answered absently, looking a second time from the dark red Converse on Chester’s feet to the sunglasses perched in his dark curls.

“Well, let’s do this. Since I’m driving, you’re navigating,” Chester said as he pulled himself off the porch column and turned to walk down the sidewalk. 

The interior of the Jeep was different from the Mustang, and Mike noticed right away the faint smell of the cucumber melon body spray the twins wore. Hair ties littered the console and a hairbrush was stuck in the cup holder. A shimmer of glitter hit his eyes as he looked over the dashboard, and everything was a reminder that Chester’s two girls were front and center in his life. He settled into the passenger seat, moving a dog-eared paperback copy of _Animal Farm_ to the back seat. 

“Sorry about the mess,” Chester apologized as he looked sideways at Mike. “The girls just leave stuff everywhere. You should see the upstairs in my house.”

“Yeah?” Mike responded, folding his hands in his lap. “We’ll have to do that sometime,” he stated casually, looking out the window as Chester backed out of the driveway. “I was thinking, first up, we hit Momentum and get coffee to go.”

“Oh, yeah!” Chester exclaimed, shifting into drive. “I want another of those badass almond danishes.” 

“Then we can head out to that big Home Goods store between here and-”

“I know the one,” Chester interrupted. “The girls love that place. They have a good selection,” he agreed, making the turns to Momentum. “They’re always wanting new little accessories for their rooms. Pillows and throw blankets and stuff. There’s some other places around there, too, if you don’t find what you’re looking for.”

“I’m not sure what I’m looking for,” Mike admitted, glancing over at Chester. “Wall art seems like such a commitment.”

Chester’s laughter rang out in the interior of the Jeep. “Commitment! If you don’t like it you just take it down and patch the little nail hole.” He shook his head. “You’re too cautious, Mikey. I’m gonna loosen you up some, you just wait and see.”

_You already have. More than you know._ Mike thought about the clothes on the floor and his sleep schedule, and knew he was already more relaxed than he was before Chester came into his life. He reached over and turned up the radio, and even though Chester raised an eyebrow at the fact that his passenger was already comfortable enough to work the volume controls in his car, he didn’t say anything. 

Together they sang along to hits from the 90’s as they picked up coffee and made the drive. Somewhere along the way, their hands found each other’s again, and Mike’s heart felt like it was flying. He wanted to get the shopping done and take Chester back to his place. He wanted to taste those lips again. He wanted to get closer, to feel some of Chester’s skin, to feel the other man’s warmth. The simple act of holding hands was enough to make his stomach roll with nervous anticipation, and they were hours away from being alone. 

When they pulled into the Home Goods shopping center, Chester let go of Mike’s hand to park, chuckling to himself at the pout on Mike’s face. _He’s adorable. I don’t know how, but every time I see him he gets cuter. It’s going to be hard not to jump on him this afternoon. We’re shopping. Not making out. But god, look at those lips. Those perfect pouty lips._ A vision of Mike on his knees, his lips wrapped around his cock and his chocolate brown eyes staring up at him flashed through Chester’s mind, and he had to stifle the moan that tried to escape from his throat. _I bet there’s never been another man in the history of the world who looks as good on his knees as my Mikey._

Chester didn’t stop to analyze how his thoughts already claimed Mike as his. He grabbed his coffee and was out of the car, opening up the passenger door for Mike and smiling charmingly at the dark-haired band director. “I’m so ready for this!” he exclaimed as Mike flashed him a grin.

“I think you’re more excited than I am,” Mike responded, getting out of the Jeep with his empty coffee cup in one hand. The parking lot looked busy, and he felt a little twinge of nervousness. _We’re far enough away from we won’t see anyone. It will be fine. And maybe I’ll see something I like quickly, and we won’t even be here long._ He felt Chester’s free hand slide into his and Mike turned to look at his shopping companion.

“This okay?” Chester asked quietly as they started walking to the front of the store.

Mike squeezed his fingers around Chester’s. “Yeah.” He tossed his coffee cup into the waste bin and looked at Chester. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t thinking about kissing you again,” he said in a sudden burst of confidence. He let his gaze linger on Chester’s lips for an extra second before he pulled him into the store.

“Glad to know it’s not just me,” Chester said playfully. “But first, let’s see if we can add some color to your life. Get ready for my expert interior decorating skills, Mike Shinoda.” He lifted his coffee cup toward the far corner of the store. “Wall art is back there.”

“How are you still drinking your coffee?” Mike asked as they walked hand in hand through the store. “I wish I still had mine.”

“I had a hand occupied by driving, and the other with you,” Chester reminded him. “Kind of hard to drink coffee with both hands full.” He shrugged. “No worries. I’d rather do this” - he held up their linked hands - “than drink this” - he held up the coffee again - “any day. No contest.” 

“You better stop slinging that cup around before you spill it.” Mike stopped in front of the large walls of prints and canvases. “Now, where to start? I was thinking something to go over the couch. I have measurements in my phone.”

“Measurements?” Chester asked, looking around. “I mean, that sounds very Mike Shinoda of you. But I think you should just feel it out. Find the one that feels best.”

“Feel it out?” Mike said skeptically. “I don’t know…”

Chester took a few steps down one low-run of smaller prints, and Mike’s eyes followed his ass as he walked. “Just look around, and when something catches your eye, think about where it could go. I mean, every wall in your house is bare. You’ve got lots of options.” He sipped his coffee as Mike took his time, methodically evaluating every painting as they slowly went down the aisle.

“I like that,” Mike said, pointing to the back wall where the larger canvases hung. “That one there, with the three panels that make up one picture.” It was an abstract with long brush strokes, in grays and blues that turned black. Dashed through it were broad swaths of crimson red, boldly jumping from one panel to the next. “What do you think? I’ve got that long wall in the bedroom, that might work nicely there.”

“The bedroom?” Chester’s mind immediately conjured up the picture he had of Mike’s cold bedroom, with its black furniture and gray and white blankets. “It would bring some personality in,” he agreed, letting go of Mike’s hand so they could pick up the panels and inspect them together. “I approve. And you didn’t need to measure anything.”

Mike rolled his eyes, then discreetly checked the price tag, nodding his agreement with the sticker. “Okay, let’s keep looking. I really want something for the living room, too. And that’s probably it for today. I don’t want to do too much, too soon.” He glanced over at Chester, thinking that applied to their relationship, too. Slow was the name of the game.

They walked along, each of them taking turns slowing their pace to lag behind and check the other out. Both of them smiled every time their eyes flicked over the other man’s ass, and quickly covered those smiles before they were caught staring. They were almost through the entire room of wall art before Mike’s eyes drifted from Chester’s backside and landed on the perfect scene. It was an abstract of the beach, with brilliant turquoise running along the width of the canvas. “Oh, Chester, that’s perfect for down stairs. That green blue, that will really pop in the living room, don’t you think?”

“Absolutely,” Chester answered immediately. He didn’t want to mention that both pieces Mike picked out were abstracts. It didn’t matter. One was going upstairs, one was going downstairs, and they were different enough. He was partial to the one for the bedroom, and he wasn’t sure if that was because it would be going in Mike’s bedroom, or he just thought the crimson red was sexy. “Let’s get that one, too,” he encouraged. “I’ll find someone to help us with it.”

“Okay,” Mike said, his voice a little faint. He loved the colors on the canvas more than the actual beach scene. There was something striking about the turquoise that made him feel like he’d really stepped out of his comfort zone. Out of the boring black and white box he’d been stuffed into with Brad. He shoved thoughts of Brad away immediately, focusing on the painting. The colors made him think of music, and music made him happy. The painting made him happy.

A sales associate came back with Chester and took all four pieces up front to wait for them to finish shopping. Mike gave Chester a quizzical look when she rolled the cart away with his artwork nestled on it securely. “We have other shopping?” He glanced down at his watch, surprised to see they’d already been in the Home Goods store over two hours. “Did you need something?” he asked.

“I just wanted to walk around. Like I said before, you never know what might catch your eye.” Chester waved his hand out in front of him. “After you, Mikey. Let’s see what else is in this giant place.” When Mike stepped in front of him, he grinned like a teenager as he tried not to reach out and grab Mike’s ass. He couldn’t wait to get back to Mike’s place.

Every few steps Mike would reach out and touch something - stemware, a pillow, a candle. He finally stopped in front of a display of blankets, his fingers caressing over the soft pile of a navy blue blanket on the end. “This feels nice,” he commented, feeling suddenly aware of Chester as he stopped close to his side and reached out. 

“It really does,” he agreed, “but this red one goes with the artwork you picked out for your bedroom. I think it would look sexy.”

“Sexy?” Mike echoed, his heart picking up speed. _Sexy? Having a red blanket would be sexy? I need this blanket._ He moved his hand to the crimson red blanket that Chester claimed matched his artwork. “Well, let’s get it.” He felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand at attention as Chester’s hand graced over his before he stepped back.

“Mike Shinoda, you’re spending money with reckless abandon today,” Chester teased, pleased that Mike was taking his suggestion. _He’s going to look so fucking hot against that red. His black hair and those dark fucking eyes, and that dark red blanket. Yes, yes, Mike, let’s buy the blanket._

“Yeah, we better get out of here before I spend my whole paycheck,” Mike said, feeling suddenly warm. “Besides, we’ve got art to hang, and I need to feed you, too. That almond danish is probably long gone.”

Chester nodded. “It is! Okay, let’s go.” He retrieved the blanket for Mike, winking as he lead the way to the front. When they got to the cashier, Chester dropped the blanket and headed off to look at candy, letting Mike have space to discreetly purchase his items. The cashier had just wrapped the last panel in paper when Chester bounced back over, a movie-theater sized box of Junior Mints in his hand. “They don’t have Sour-Patch Kids,” he pouted for a split second. 

“But you need a snack, despite the lack of options?” Mike asked, holding out his hand to give them to the cashier and watching Chester nod, pulling out of his frown. _He’s like a kid. So cute._

Chester swatted his hand away. “I got them,” he declared, flashing them at the Home Goods employee and passing off three one-dollar bills with an easy smile. He already had them open and was popping them one by one into his mouth while they carefully loaded Mike’s newly purchased artwork into the Jeep. “Want one?” he asked, looking Mike’s way as he closed the back hatch.

“Sure,” Mike answered, holding his hand out for Chester to drop a few into.

But Chester shook his head, taking a step closer to Mike. “Nuh-uh. Open up.” He licked his lips as Mike’s parted willingly and allowed the candy to be popped in his mouth. They held each other’s gaze for a moment, and Chester smiled in satisfaction as Mike chewed and swallowed the candy. “Good, isn’t it?”

“Mmm-hmm,” Mike hummed. He wanted to kiss Chester right then, to taste the combination of mint and chocolate on his lips, but they were in a parking lot, in a very public shopping center. He went so far as to glance around to see if it was worth chancing it, and decided with a sigh not to. 

“Come on,” Chester said, his words light and happy. “Let’s get all this back to your place.” He motioned to the artwork in the back. “I can’t wait to see what they’ll look like. Especially the ones with the red in them.”

Mike let Chester open the passenger door for him, and as he got in the Jeep, he paused with one leg still out of the door. “Me, too,” he said, looking up at Chester. “Let’s get back and see if we van get them put up.” His eyes traveled down Chester’s bare arms and he felt a shiver of anticipation. _If we get them put up. I might tackle him when we get there._ Mike settled into the passenger seat and Chester shut the door, and he looked down to see a pink sticky note in the floor of the Jeep. 

Leaning over, he snagged it and turned it over. _I love you Dad!_ was written in purple pen, with hearts in the place of the o’s. Mike smiled and stuck it to the dash. _No tackling, Mike. You gotta go slow. You gotta make it until May._

He stared at the sticky note the whole way back to his house. They drove back home, hands linked together again, chatting away about the purchases, Mike’s math skills and methods of hanging pictures, and candy. Once they managed to center the large canvas over the couch together, Mike took the hammer and box of nails back out to the garage with Lexie following close behind. She was super curious about what he and Chester had been doing in the house, and was keeping close tabs on her owner. She’d been underfoot upstairs in the bedroom as they debated over the placement of the tri-panel painting, weaving between Mike’s feet and meowing impatiently while he ignored her and gave Chester all her attention. 

When Chester insisted they spread the new blanket out to see how it looked with the new art, she scooted underneath to play peek-a-boo, but was miffed when Mike ignored her. Trying to figure out why everything sparked static electricity between the two of them was a much more compelling topic of conversation than playing with the cat. A smile spread over Mike’s face as he thought of the snap in the air when his hand connected with Chester’s as they both spread their fingers over the soft, new blanket. _It happens so often, it can’t just be a coincidence._

He came back inside, making sure he didn’t leave Lexie in the garage, and washed his hands in the kitchen sink with the lemon kitchen soap he loved. “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. I’ve got stuff for tacos, what do you think?” he called out to Chester while he dried his hands. 

“Let’s just order pizza,” Chester suggested as he leaned against the bar, looking at the clock on the oven. “It’s already dinner time, and tacos take too long. If you do them right,” he amended. “I could totally go for a big supreme right now. Extra mushrooms. Please, please tell me you like mushrooms,” Chester begged. “The girls hate them, and I never get to have them.”

Mike grinned as he reached for the phone. “Extra mushrooms coming your way, Mr. Bennington. You’ve earned them this afternoon.” He watched Chester saunter off and plop down on the couch, propping his socked feet up on the cushion, and Mike’s eyes caught the new art they had placed over the furniture together. “It looks good!” 

He meant the artwork, but he let his eyes travel down the long lines of Chester’s body as he made himself comfortable, thinking he looked even better. _Fuck. Look at him on my couch. I could strip him right there._ Mike was completely distracted as he ordered the pizza, barely remembering the extra mushrooms, and rattled off his credit card number over the phone. Chester was so tempting, and Mike’s resolve was failing. He wasn’t sure how much more he could take before he decided to hell with it and jumped on the father of his students.

Mike cleared his throat and called into the living room, “do you want some wine? I know that’s real classy with pizza, but I figure wine goes with anything.”

“Sure,” Chester called, his attention focused on the phone in his hand. Lily had texted him, and he always responded right away. “How about red this time?”

Looking over at the wine rack, Mike nodded to himself. “Done,” he called, stepping over to take down the bottle he wanted. While Chester was occupied he found the corkscrew and opened the bottle, pouring some into his favorite two red wine glasses to let it breathe. When he went back to the living room, Chester was sitting up, a tiny frown on his lips. “Everything okay?” 

Chester waved his phone at Mike. “Yeah, Lily. She’s upset with her mom, but that’s nothing new. Those two butt heads because they’re exactly alike. She’ll calm down. I learned a long time ago not to engage when she gets like this.” His face relaxed back to a half smile and he looked at Mike’s empty hands. “Didn’t I hear you say something about wine?”

“Oh, yeah, I opened it to breathe,” Mike said, tentatively. “Do you need to call her? Lily, I mean?” He didn’t want Chester to get into a long conversation, or worse, end up having to leave, but he also didn’t want to be the reason he was preoccupied all night and ignoring his daughter.

“No, she just wanted to vent for a second. I just told her I love her and that I’d see her tomorrow. She can be a little dramatic. If it was Lila texting, then I’d have to probably give Tal a call to see what was going on. But Lily, I think she texts just to see if I’ll answer. Which I always do,” he finished seriously.

Mike sat down on the other side of the same couch, though he wanted to sit much closer. “That’s good of you. I’m sure that helps.”

“I think so,” Chester said before Lexie jumped up on the couch behind him, walking along the back of the couch and flicking her tail in his face before sitting in the space between the two men. “Wow, she is sassy. Your cat’s acting like I’m intruding on your Saturday night plans,” Chester teased, giving Lexie back the same stare she was dishing out.

Lexie perched between them, perfectly still, watching Chester like he was something to pounce on. Mike chuckled inside his head. _Same, Lex. I wanna pounce on him, too._ “Ah, Lex, you jealous?” Mike asked the cat fondly, scooting closer to Chester to reach out and pet her. With a scandalized look, Lexie flipped her tail again and batted at Mike’s hand until he finally got his fingers under her chin. As he scratched under the little v-shaped divot of her lower jaw, she gave in and leaned her head back, letting Mike love on her. “That’s what I thought. All I have to do is pay you a little bit of attention and you’re putty in my hands.”

Chester wanted to agree with Mike, but he kept his thoughts to himself. _Slow. Even though I saw him checking me out in the store, even though I know if I kissed him again right now, we’d both be putty in each other’s hands._ He watched Mike lovingly attend to his cat, and he’d never wanted to be a cat so much in his life.

“So,” Mike said, bumping his knee into Chester’s leg but not looking at him. “You want to watch a movie or something? Pizza should be here soon.” He heard the hopeful tone in his voice and it made his heart flutter anxiously. _I want him to want to stay longer, but I don’t want him to know how much I want him to stay! I don’t want to sound desperate!_

Chester reached out to catch Mike’s leg, latching his fingers over the kneecap like octopus tentacles. “Mike Shinoda, are you asking me to Netflix and Chill?” He almost laughed out loud as Mike’s wide eyes flew up to meet his.

“I- well, I- I mean, I really meant watch a movie,” Mike stumbled along for a second, caught off guard by Chester’s bold question. The first time he’d heard the phrase _Netflix and Chill_ he’d been standing in the hallway between class changes when a group of athletes went by, giving their friend a hard time about asking a girl to _Netflix and Chill_ before she was officially his girlfriend. The overheard conversation meant nothing to Mike, who’d then asked Rob about the phrase, only to find out it was a euphemism for getting together to have sex.

“Relax, Mike,” Chester said with a giggle. “I’m just messing with you. Though I wouldn’t say no to a little wine and snuggling, and a movie if it makes you feel better.” His voice dropped a little and he looked directly at Mike’s lips. “I haven’t stopped thinking about kissing you last night. I totally want to do that again.”

“Yeah?” Mike asked, feeling his cheeks flush slightly. He leaned forward a little, nudging Lexie out of the space between them, not even glancing at her when she jumped down in a huff. “Well, I wouldn’t say no to that, either.” 

Chester flexed his fingers over Mike’s knee. “I know you’ve got rules, and I understand, I do,” he started, looking down at his hand on Mike’s jeans. “I mean it last night when I said I wanted you to be sure. I don’t want to rush you. I know we aren’t supposed to be doing this while the girls are in your class, and I… I don’t want you to think I’m not respecting your boundaries.” 

Mike jumped at the knock on the door that interrupted the moment. “There’s the pizza,” he stated, jumping up from Chester’s hand and startling Lexie, who jumped down and ran under the coffee table. “Hold that thought.” He went to the door for the pizza, grateful for the second to order his thoughts. _Maybe I don’t want him to respect my boundaries. Maybe I want him to lay me down and fuck me right on this couch._

He shook his head as he turned away from mechanically accepting the hot boxes and shut the door. _I can’t say that. And we can’t do that. As much as I want him, it’s too soon. And there’s kids involved. We both have to be very, very sure of this before it ever gets to sex._ He deposited the boxes on the coffee table and scooped up the remote, tossing it to Chester. “Here. Find something you want to watch. I’ll go grab the wine.” 

Going into the kitchen gave him another few seconds to think. _We’ll watch some tv, have dinner and talk, and see where things go. I can’t promise I won’t drag him upstairs. I can only say that I know it would be better to wait._ He grabbed both wine glasses and was back in the living room before Chester had stopped browsing the guide.

“You’ve seen _The Office,_ right?” Chester asked, accepting one of the wine glasses from Mike. 

“Of course. Are there people out there who haven’t?” Mike asked sincerely. 

“Probably. But they suck,” Chester smirked. “There’s a rerun marathon on right now. Looks as good as anything.” He tossed the remote to the side and took a sip of the wine. “Fuck, Mike, that’s good. You’ve got excellent taste in wine, you know that?”

Mike sat back down on the couch, tucking one foot up under his butt. “It’s one of those little side passions. Something I think is interesting, but not enough to make it a career or anything.” He smiled and smelled the wine before tasting it. “This is a good one. Perfect with pizza.”

Chester laughed, and Mike’s fingertips tingled. “I can smell the mushrooms,” he cooed, opening the lid to the top box and reaching for a slice. “This is exactly what I needed after being dragged around shopping all afternoon, and forced to hammer nails into your walls.” He winked at Mike, making sure he knew the last part was just a joke. 

“Yeah, I really mistreated you today. But I knew I’d win you back with mushrooms.” Mike put his glass on the coffee table and slid the top pizza box over to get to the one underneath. Chester watched curiously as Mike opened the box and took out a piece of pizza with chicken, spinach, bacon crumbles, and feta on top. “So? How are they?”

Chester watched Mike take a bite of his pizza and his mouth dropped open. “You don’t like mushrooms,” he stated, analyzing the toppings on Mike’s pizza. 

“No, but _you_ do.” Mike was pleased when Chester’s face broke into an ear to ear grin. “I wanted to see you smile.” 

They looked at each other for a moment, and Chester couldn’t help but shake his head. “You’re really something else, you know that?” He adored the way Mike beamed at him before they settled back to watch _The Office,_ chatting on and off about the plot line they’d both already seen, and which characters they loved and hated. 

Mike got up to get the bottle of wine from the kitchen to refill their glasses, then topped them off, his body already pleasantly warm from the alcohol. When he sat back down on the couch, he was a little closer to Chester than he’d been before. He took the opportunity to drop his hand on Chester’s thigh as he settled in close, tucking his legs to the side and leaning against the other man, his wine glass in the other hand. “Don’t let me stop you from eating,” he teased as Chester leaned forward to put half a slice of pizza back in the box. 

“You’re not stopping me from anything,” Chester murmured, slipping his arm around Mike’s shoulder and pulling him even closer. “How’s this?” He asked, turning his head to lightly kiss Mike’s temple. 

“It’s good,” Mike whispered with a tiny smile, bringing his wine glass to his lips. “I’ll let you know if you cross any boundaries,” he added, since they had yet to get back to the subject from earlier. He resisted the urge to lean his head on Chester’s shoulder and instead focused on keeping his breathing under control though his heart was racing. _We need to finish this wine. He’s so warm. God, I want to drag him upstairs. We could just cuddle. No, no we couldn’t._

Chester was lightly running his hand over Mike’s shoulder, then letting his thumb graze close to Mike’s neck before moving away to start all over again. _I wonder what he’s thinking. He’s nervous. But why? I won’t do anything he’s not comfortable with. Even though I’d love to lay him on this couch right now and get him naked._ Chester tried to focus on the sitcom they were watching, but his mind kept coming back to the feel of Mike’s lips last night, their first tentative kiss. He looked at Mike’s wine glass. _Hurry up with the wine so I can kiss you. I want to taste it on you. Fuck, look at those lips._

He watched, mesmerized, as Mike lifted the glass to his lips again, the red wine staining his full lips a darker shade of pink. Chester waited for him to swallow, then reached to pluck the glass from Mike’s hand. The alcohol induced flush on Mike’s cheeks was gorgeous, and Chester wanted to tackle him backwards right then and there. But common sense reminded him to lift his arm over Mike’s shoulders and lean forward to put both their almost empty glasses on the coffee table. Broken glassware wouldn’t be sexy at all.

Mike felt his stomach flutter in anticipation. They’d been building to this moment all day, and he was ready. Chester turned to look at Mike over his shoulder, and Mike’s breath caught as he settled back on the couch, as Chester reached out to touch his face. “I’ve had a great day with you,” he husked, looking at Mike’s wine-stained lips. “And I don’t think I can wait any more.”

“I don’t want you to,” Mike whispered, his eyes sliding closed as Chester leaned closer, his warm mouth covering Mike’s lips softly. He took his time, letting his tongue come out to lick gently at Mike’s bottom lip, tasting the wine and coaxing Mike’s lips apart. Mike felt Chester’s thumb stroking over his jaw, playing with his beard, before his fingers feathered down his neck. The kiss went deeper than the one they’d shared the night before, and Chester shifted closer, one hand going around the back of Mike’s neck, the other inching toward Mike’s hip. 

He pulled back, and Mike’s eyes stayed closed, his lips glistening with moisture. Chester kissed the corner of his mouth, then slid his hand around to Mike’s shoulder, pressing him back into the couch gently. Then it was one small, hot, open mouthed kiss after another down the side of Mike’s neck, then up under his jaw, Chester’s nose being tickled by the dark facial hair. 

_I love that, how does he know I love that?_ Mike’s hand slid higher on Chester’s thigh, closer to his hip, as the soft, wet kisses to his neck continued. He felt Chester shift a little closer and his hand fall to Mike’s chest, then lower, and then it was up under Mike’s shirt, Chester’s warm, slender fingers touching over his skin for the first time. 

Chester felt the shiver when he finally touched Mike’s body, and his dick responded instantly, the arousal ramping up as a breathy sigh came from Mike’s lips. It was enough to halt the exploration of Mike’s neck, and Chester made his way back to Mike’s mouth, where this time he didn’t need to lick and coax his way inside. Their lips met a little more urgently, Mike’s tongue the one seeking as they kissed until they were both breathless. Back and forth, they traded kisses… long kisses, short kisses, neck and face and lip kisses. 

Chester pulled away and Mike grabbed for his shirt, running both hands around his waist and up under the fabric, his palms flat against Chester’s back and pulling him in closer. As the minutes ticked by, they each discovered new bits of skin to touch, to imagine. They were already comfortable with each other, the months of shared conversation and emotional intimacy bleeding over into physical intimacy that neither of them wanted to stop. 

Despite all his rules and imagined restraint, it was Mike that slid down on the couch cushion and pulled Chester along with him. It was Mike that parted his thighs and let Chester slip between them, his flamed arms one on each side of Mike’s head, holding him up and keeping their bodies from touching as he kissed Mike again. Chester could feel the shake in his arms as he kept them carefully apart, knowing if he pressed his body down into Mike’s that things would go beyond kissing, fast. 

There was no longer a back and forth, cat and mouse guessing game of whether or not the other person was interested. It was more than obvious that they could both run upstairs and jump in Mike’s meticulously made bed right now. _I could ask him to stay,_ Mike thought, _and I’m pretty sure he’d say yes. And this feels so right. I know it would feel good. Why won’t he just touch me? I’ll have to make that move, he’s being cautious. He doesn’t want to cross my boundaries. Because of my job. We’ll just keep it a secret. That’s what I said. A secret._

But Lexie had other ideas, and as Mike was about to back away from the kiss, to invite Chester to come to bed with him, she took her opportunity to pounce, both front paws swiping at Mike’s hair frantically.

“Lexie!” he exclaimed, startled, and Chester burst out laughing instantly as Mike tried to get the cat off his head. Mike’s arms went over his head to shoo Lexie away, and Chester sat back on his knees, giving his arms a rest, his body shaking with laughter.

“She’s a jealous thing, isn’t she?” he asked between gasps for air.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with her,” Mike moaned, the tension between them broken. “Most of the time I’m here she ignores me. All it takes for her to want my attention is to bring you home.” He caught his breath, his body coming down from rush of hormones that had been flowing between him and Chester. Mike watched Chester collapse back on the couch, and he wiggled his way back into a sitting position.

“Lexie, the chastity police,” Chester giggled. “She’s just making sure we don’t get too carried away.” His eyes turned serious as he reached over and pulled Mike close again, snuggling their bodies together. They melted together comfortably, and sat for a minute, catching their breath. “Aren’t we supposed to be watching a movie?” Chester finally asked. _I’m not ready to go. I want to keep touching him and kissing him. Don’t tell me to go, Mike. I’ll be good._

Mike blew out a breath and rubbed his hand over Chester’s stomach. “Something like that. But… I’m up for more kissing, too,” he murmured slyly, pressing a kiss under Chester’s jaw next to his ear. “You’re a hell of a kisser, Mr. Bennington.”

“And you’re tempting,” Chester said with a hitch in his words as Mike kissed down his neck. Before he could get far, Lexie climbed across Mike and deposited herself right in Chester’s lap, stretching across his leg and placing her paws on Mike’s thigh, kneading at him sleepily. They both looked down as Lexie made herself comfortable, tucking her face close to Mike’s leg before she fell asleep. 

_She knows,_ Mike thought. _She’s making sure I don’t drag him upstairs. Silly, jealous cat._ His eyes caught Chester’s, and he smiled. “I guess it’s gonna be Netflix and Pet the Cat,” Mike laughed, moving his hand from Chester to stroke his pet softly.

“Cats are like kids,” Chester said, reaching for the remote. “Jealous little time-suckers.” He paused, thinking how funny it was that Mike’s cat was jealous, the way he knew his girls would be, at least at first, when he brought Mike home. “It’s good practice for us,” he finally decided, clicking through options on the screen. It wouldn’t hurt them to spend the night talking and playing with the cat, just like it wouldn’t hurt to have Mike around his girls. _That’s next. Before any sex, he’s got to meet the girls, not as Mr. Shinoda, but as Mike. My Mike._

Having made a selection, he dropped the remote, and then reached to carefully pet Lexie, too. Mike watched, pleased that Chester was okay with his beloved cat stretched out over his lap, and smiled, satisfied with how the whole evening was turning out after all. 

****  
TBC


	9. Lily's Surprise

Before Mike knew it, it was the end of April. Time always flew by at the end of the school year, with the performance schedules, the standardized testing, and the spring holidays. He was stressed, but it was the good kind of stress, the type he lived for as a musician. Things were coming together at school, and his personal life wasn’t anything to frown upon either.

He’d been a good son lately, dutifully showing up for Sunday family dinners, playing with his nieces and enjoying the company of his parents, brother, and sister-in-law. Sunday dinner was one of the first things he’d stopped attending when Brad left him, the sympathy of his family and shame of being alone more than he wanted to deal with at the time. But now Chester was in his life. Maybe not in a way that he could share yet, but the knowledge that he was once again building a relationship with someone was confidence boosting. 

Since their shopping date, there had been two free weekends spent with Chester when he didn’t have the girls. The connection between the two of them grew with every moment they shared, and despite both of them desiring the other, they’d been careful not to get carried away. Making out on the couch like virgin teenagers was fine, and they had even bravely explored each others skin, learning the spots that sent shivers down each other’s spines and pulled gasps and moans from their lips. Chester knew the place under Mike’s chin that would drop his head back in pleasure every time he kissed there, and Mike knew that lightly running his fingertips over Chester’s nipples resulted in shivers and gasps from the other man.

Mike had felt Chester’s body pressed against his, but they had both refrained from any further petting. In the back of his mind, at least, he knew that all self control would be out the window the moment they started touching more intimately and taking off clothes. Just the thought of sliding his hand down the front of Chester’s jeans was almost more than he could handle. He knew when he got to that point, there would be no holding back.

Even now, buried in paperwork at his desk, filling out form after form for the multiple trips the band was going on soon, the thought of finally knowing what Chester was hiding under his jeans caused Mike’s cock to twitch. Just the idea of anything sexual was overwhelming. _It’s been so long. Too long. Is it summer, yet? I am so ready for our relationship to not be wrong. I’m so ready to be able to move this to the next place. I know he is, too. I love his good morning texts and I love spending time with him. Even Lexie is starting to get used to having him around. I’m so, so ready._

The bell rang to dismiss Rob’s class, and Mike sighed, pressing the little save icon on his school desktop. He was still at least an hour’s worth of work away from being able to submit his travel requests, and it was irritating to have to stop in the middle of things. 

Stepping out of the office, he was almost run over by two kids on their way out of the room and rushing to their math class, and was in the middle of fussing at them for running in the band hall when Lily came in. Her bright yellow GAP hoodie stuck out against the ocean of black t-shirts and hoodies of the students around her. She looked like a yellow crayon in a box full of black.

But it was her demeanor that caught Mike’s attention immediately. For once she was alone, and silent. He sent Brendan and Aidan on their way and turned to watch Lily get her flute from her locker. The normally bubbly girl who was always surrounded by friends and being chastised for coming into the rehearsal space too loudly was in her own world. It was a big red flag that something was wrong, and it wasn’t a consideration that she was Chester’s daughter, or that she didn’t really seem to like Mike. All he saw was a student whose behavior was crying out for attention, and so he did what he always did in that situation. 

Mike walked to the front of the room, his coffee cup in one hand and method book in the other. “Lily? Everything okay?” Mike asked, watching from the podium as Chester’s daughter jammed her flute together and hunched over in her seat, her long hair covering her face, two black streams against the yellow sunshine of her sweatshirt.

“Why do you care?” came Lily’s biting response, and Mike was taken aback. He’d been dealing with middle school kids for a long time, and he knew pre-teen girls were especially moody, but Lily Bennington was typically pretty happy. She was popular but generally didn’t care what others thought about her. She already had the attention of all the boys, and she was smart. It was the trifecta of middle school awesomeness.

“I, well, I just thought maybe you needed to talk about what’s on your mind,” Mike said. “You look upset. But it can wait until after class if you want. Or not at all. I was just offering.”

Lily looked up at him then, a glare in her eyes. “You can’t do anything about it anyway,” she snarled, looking around at her classmates as they put instruments together before the bell rang. “It’s just stupid stuff with my dad.” 

Mike’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of Chester. He knew he should leave it alone and not pry, but part of him wanted to know what had happened that made Lily so upset. “You’re right,” he tried. “ I can’t do anything except listen. Sometimes that’s all it takes to figure out what you should do.” 

“Dad’s got another boyfriend,” Lily blurted out, her face suddenly contorted with pain. “And he won’t bring him home. Which means he doesn’t want kids, and I don’t know why Dad keeps going out with these guys that hate us!” she wailed, the tears starting to fall.

Mike was stunned speechless, his mouth was hanging open. That was the last thing he’d expected to come out of Lily’s mouth. Petty girl fights, or a bad grade, or boy drama was more his speed when it came to helping students out with their issues. Helping one out with their dad’s boyfriend drama when _he_ was the secret boyfriend was not something he’d ever had to deal with. 

He watched Lily try to compose herself for a minute before he reached for the tissue box. “Here,” he said gently, holding it out. “If you want to talk about it, we can go in the office, not out here.” He waited while Lily shook her head no, and then said, “okay. Maybe after class.”

He spend the rest of the hour preoccupied with thoughts of Chester. Everything between them seemed to be going well, but now he knew that keeping the secret was hurting Chester’s girls, and Mike didn’t like that. The last thing he wanted to do was cause a problem between Chester and the twins. Even Lila was more subdued than usual, and Mike started to wonder if this had been a topic of conversation before school.

Mike had been teaching long enough to move through rehearsal without really thinking about what he was doing. There could never be enough repetitions, anyway, and most of his instruction was centered around _okay, do that again_ instead of really teaching, but there were occasional days like that, so he didn’t worry about it much. He was too busy wondering what he could say to Chester, or if Chester would bring it up himself. 

Finally, he looked at the clock and it told him he could stop going through the motions of teaching. “Good rehearsal today, you guys. The spring concert music is really coming along. Go ahead and pack up.” It was two minutes before the dismissal bell, but Mike was finished. He wanted to text Chester and tell him what was on his mind. His eyes flashed to Lily as he picked up with coffee cup and stepped off the podium.

“Lily? Did you want to talk?” he asked quietly, standing in front of her chair.

“It’s okay, Mr. Shinoda,” Lily mumbled. She grabbed her flute case and took it to her locker. “It won’t make a difference. He’ll do what he always does. Date someone for a while and get involved, and then when they don’t want to meet us, they’ll break up and he’ll be depressed again.” She looked up to meet Mike’s troubled gaze. “That’s the part I hate. When he finally gives up. I just want my dad to be happy.” She shoved her flute in her locker and picked up her backpack. “Thanks, though.”

Mike watched her leave the room, his heart beating furiously as he replayed her words. _He’ll do what he always does. I guess he dates a lot of people. Maybe this isn’t as special as I thought. Maybe it won’t become anything. We only have one more month to go, but we might not make it that far, if the girls are upset. He might end it now._

He took his coffee cup into the office and sat down, and the sideways lean of his chair that typically bothered him didn’t even register in his mind. He needed to talk to Chester. If there was even the possibility he was thinking of ending things, Mike just wanted it over with. The thought of the past few months being a waste of time brought back a rush of emotions from the end of his marriage to Brad, and he turned to his desk, tucking his legs underneath and dropping his forehead into his hands.

_He’s gonna end it. I don’t want this to end. We’ve just gotten started. And the connection, it’s there. I was feeling so positive, and now… now, he’s gonna choose the girls over me. Which he should. He’s their dad. This is why dating parents isn’t okay. This is why I should have said no. Now he’s going to leave me, too. It will all be a waste of time… just like Brad._ He was taking deep breaths to calm himself when Rob came in the office.

“Whoa. Class that bad?” he asked, dropping into his chair. He automatically reached for his baggie of protein powder and his shaker bottle of water. “Come on, Mike, it’s a beginner spring concert. Not the end of the world, you know? It can’t be _that_ bad.”

Mike rubbed his forehead and looked over at Rob, his eyes narrowing at the despised shaker bottle. “Something like that. It will be fine. Just ready for the day to be over.” He reached for his phone and pulled up the text app, staring down at Chester’s name and the last text he’d sent. 

**Chester:** _Good morning! Woke up thinking about you. Can’t wait for the weekend. Missing you a lot today._

There was a kissy face emoji at the end of his text, and Mike had replied with a simple good morning and a kissy face as well. Usually they texted on and off throughout the day, but Mike had been in travel request paperwork hell every second he wasn’t in front of a band, and he had to figure Chester had been busy too. _Unless he argued with the girls this morning. And now he doesn’t want to text me because he’s going to break up with me!_

“Mike.”

Rob’s voice cut through Mike’s internal panic. “Sorry, yeah. I’ve just had all this stupid paperwork today, and I’m tired. Sixth period was fine, they sound fine. How’s the percussion? Can they make it through everything? We need to schedule a combined rehearsal with all the beginners,” he rambled off quickly, trying to cover for zoning out.

Rob lifted his eyebrow behind his glasses, a stand of hair falling over them as he regarded Mike thoughtfully. “Yeah. We do. The percussion are fine.” He blended his shake for a couple of seconds and popped the top for a drink. This week was vanilla. “You sure that’s all? You’ve been bouncing around here for weeks on cloud nine, which I can only assume is Paul, and now you look like… well, like the Mike from before Paul. Did something happen with you guys?”

Rob hadn’t asked about Paul in weeks. He’d been trying to respect Mike’s request to stay out of the beginning stages of the relationship so he could test it all out on his own, without any pressure. So Rob had quietly observed the subtle changes in his colleague without much comment. Mike was less strict about coming to work on time. He was sleepy and distracted. But he’d also been more relaxed with the kids, more fun in rehearsal. 

Mike sighed. _Should I say something to him? I don’t even know for sure if anything is wrong. I just know Lily and Lila are upset. Chester might not even know._ “Things with Paul are fine,” Mike lied. “I was just about to text him.”

“Maybe he’ll bring that smile back to your face then. I’ve kinda liked you being in love.” Rob leaned back in his chair and grinned at the astonished look on Mike’s face.

“In love?” he echoed. “I never said that. We aren’t, we haven’t, I mean…” Mike stopped, his cheeks flushing slightly. “I don’t know about that. We’re barely dating. We only see each other every other weekend-”

“Really? Why’s that?” Rob asked, crossing his ankles in front of him. “He got kids or something?” As middle school teachers they were both well-versed in divorced parent custody issues. They navigated those waters constantly when performances fell on weekends. It was something Mike hated dealing with, and the last thing Rob thought his boss would get himself involved with. He chuckled to himself before he caught the stricken look on Mike’s face, and then he leaned forward, his laughter gone immediately. “Oh shit, Mike. He’s got kids?”

The sigh this time was much longer and more dramatic, and Mike closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. “Bourdie, you have no idea what a mess it actually is. I’ve been trying to ignore the messy part and focus on the good part. But, yeah. He’s got kids.”

“Fuck,” Rob said instantly. “How old?”

Mike waited for a moment, wondering if he really wanted to go there with Rob or not. They’d been working together for six years, and he hated keeping secrets. Rob was a good guy. A trustworthy guy. _I could just tell him. He won’t say anything. I don’t have to give specifics._ He covered his eyes with his hand. “Eleven.” He didn’t mention that they were _both_ eleven. It was telling half the truth.

He watched Rob straighten up in his chair. “Eleven? Well, at least you know how to deal with middle school kids. Have you met the kid?”

“Not yet. It’s early, you know?”

“Mike. It’s been three months. That’s not really early. Either you know by now or you don’t. Who’s holding back? You or Paul?”

“I, well, it’s kind of both of us.” Mike looked down at the phone again, and thumbed a quick, _hey_ to Chester while he talked to Rob. He was distracted as he went on, “I guess it’s both of us. He’s cautious about introducing people to his girls and I don’t want to meet them until we’re both sure where it’s going, you know?” He looked up to meet Rob’s stare, and immediately he knew he’d messed up.

“Girls? More than one? You said his kid was eleven.” Rob set his shaker bottle down on the corner of his desk and crossed his arms, raising his eyebrow and giving Mike his best ‘you-better-tell-me-the-truth’ teacher look. 

Mike’s eyes skipped away and he stared at the vanilla protein shake. “Yeah. Fuck. Yeah, they’re eleven.”

Realization dawned over Rob like a sunrise. “Holy shit, Mike. Twins? Twin girls? Eleven year old twin girls, are you kidding me, Mike? Paul is Chester Bennington?” He sat back, his eyes huge behind his glasses. “Why the fuck didn’t you tell me? I knew you had the hots for him, but I never thought you’d date a parent!”

“Shh!” Mike hushed in a panic. “Don’t say anything! I know we’re not supposed to date parents, that’s why I didn’t tell you. And it hasn’t gone far, not yet anyway. I know there’s boundaries, and the girls are in my class and all that. I didn’t mean to get involved before the end of the school year, I swear.” 

Rob shook his head. “I don’t care about that part, Mike. You can date who you want. I just… Chester Bennington? A couple of months ago you couldn’t stand those kids. And now you’re dating their dad? I mean, when we have kids we can’t stand, we know at the end of the year they’re gone. But if you and Chester get serious, you’ll have those two forever.”

“Things are a lot better now,” Mike defended as his phone vibrated. 

**Chester:** _Hey yourself. It’s been nuts around here today. I can’t believe it’s only Wednesday._

**Mike:** _Yes! My day has been crazy._

He looked back up at Rob. “I know they can be a lot to take, but it’s got to be hard to be through what they’ve been though. First a divorce, then finding out your dad prefers the company of men… it’s a lot.” The phone vibrated again and he resisted the urge to look at it immediately. “Bourdie, you can’t say anything. I haven’t even told my family.”

“Jay doesn’t know?” Rob asked quietly, watching Mike as he fidgeted with his phone and rubbed his free hand over his arm nervously before he read a message and sent another one. Rob waited patiently, taking in every nervous movement of Mike’s body. 

**Chester:** _I can’t wait until 5:00._

**Mike:** _I really need to talk to you tonight. Any way you can come by? Just for an hour or so._

Mike looked back up from his phone. “I can’t tell him yet. I’m pretty sure he knows something is up, but I don’t want him going to Hahn with it.”

“He’s your brother, Mike. Above anything else, I think he takes that pretty seriously.” Rob watched Mike read another text from Chester.

“I just… until I know for sure, until I’m with Chester and the girls and I’m just Mike, not Mr. Shinoda, I don’t want to get their hopes up. My mom and dad. You know?” Mike quickly answered Chester’s text about a time to meet. “Everyone was so sympathetic and careful with me after Brad left, and I don’t want that sympathy anymore, Bourdie. That shit got old fast. I don’t want my mom falling in love with Chester and then it not working out. My divorce was hard on them, even though they tried to hide it. I just don’t want them to know until we’re an official thing. Until the girls accept things.” 

“I get it,” Rob said, picking up his abandoned drink and shaking the bottle a few times, the blender ball hitting the sides of the bottle with the annoying sound Mike hated. “I won’t say a word. I know you’re being careful, but… damn. I hope it all works out. You’ve been so different since you met him. More like the Mike I used to know.” Rob smiled kindly. “I kinda missed that guy.” 

Mike smiled back, even though his stomach was in knots as he looked at Chester’s last text. “I know, Bourdie. Trust me, I want it to work out.” 

**Chester:** _I’ll see you at 6:30._

****

Mike paced a circle around the living room. Every once in a while he glanced at the canvas he and Chester had hung over the couch weeks ago. The idea that they could be finished stung. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to bear looking at it if tonight was the last time Chester was in his house. _I’ll take it down. And the one upstairs. And I can just go back to the way things were. Just me and Lexie._

Mike sighed. He didn’t want to go back to the way things were. He had gotten used to the way every other weekend was filled with Chester. His laughter, his genuineness, his kisses and hands and heat. Going back to the way things were before, when he came home every Friday night and spent his time alone, sounded even worse now than it did when Brad left him. _At least when Brad left, we’d been drifting apart for a while. Chester and I have done nothing but get closer. God, I don’t want this to end._

The knock on the front door startled him, and Mike pressed his hands to his cheeks. Chester was on the other side of the front door, and whether or not their relationship - was it a relationship? - continued hinged upon whether or not Chester even knew his girls were upset.

Before he could utter a word when he opened the door, Chester was in the foyer, both hands immediately where Mike’s had just been on his cheeks. “Mikey? What’s wrong? Your texts were weird, and it’s a school night. I don’t have long. The girls are out to dinner with Tal. What’s wrong?” he asked again, searching frantically in Mike’s eyes.

“The girls,” Mike started. “It’s about the girls.”

“What about them?” Chester’s expression changed from concern to wariness instantly, and he dropped his hands, taking a step back. “What happened with the girls?”

Mike felt the loss instantly. “Nothing _happened_. Lily came into band upset today and when I asked her what was on her mind, she, well, it was about you. And kind of about me.” They were still standing in the foyer, and Mike wanted to move into the living room, but Chester was planted firmly with the look of protective dad on his face.

“You? They don’t know anything about you!”

“And that was the issue. Lily… Lily said… god, Chester, can we go sit down?” Mike gave Chester his best pleading eyes, and watched the other man’s defensive shoulders drop.

“Sure, sorry, I… just, when it’s my girls, you know how I am. That’s the reason we met in the first place. Any issue and I just want all the information, immediately, so I can solve the problem. I should let them solve their own problems, I know, but they’re just babies. Only eleven.” Chester ran his hand over his dark curls and then waved his hand out in front of him. “After you.”

Mike lead the way to the couch and they both sat down facing each other, Lexie scampering out of the way and under the coffee table with a disgruntled meow. He could feel the sweat forming on the back of his neck. This conversation was about to happen, whether he wanted it to or not. “Lily. She came in upset, and when I asked her about it, she said, ‘dad’s got another new boyfriend, and he won’t let us meet him.’” He looked down at the couch and swiped his hand over the leather. “So she took that to mean that I don’t want kids, and that you and I will break up over it, and then you… you’ll be depressed again.” Mike voice faded off at the end, like he wasn’t sure if he should say everything that Lily had blurted out when she was upset.

Chester blew out a long breath and leaned his head back on the couch. There was total silence between them as he processed Mike’s words. He didn’t even know where to start. It was true he’d told the girls he was dating someone that morning, and it was true he’d told them that they couldn’t meet him just yet. If he’d known they were going to take it so hard, he wouldn’t have said anything. He closed his eyes before he said, “Mike, I’m sorry you had to hear about this from Lily. She’s so dramatic.” 

Mike felt the fear he was feeling wane a little bit. “She does tend to be a little dramatic. But, I have to admit, she made it sound like this is a common problem for you.” He peeked up to see Chester’s face, but his head was still resting on the back of the couch.

“She’s a middle school girl, Mike. Of course everything is overstated. Ever since I told them that I was dating, they’ve always wanted to meet the guys. And I’ve never brought anyone home to them. It’s only been casual stuff. Nothing important. Nothing long term. Like I said that night at iHop, I figured out that if we weren’t on the same page with kids, it wasn’t worth my time. That’s why it was so important to talk about that with you early. Even though I totally understand that you can’t meet them now, I didn’t want to get five months into this and have to break it off. I’m not getting any younger, you know?” He rolled his head to the side and looked at Mike.

“I get it,” Mike whispered, “and I’m sorry I can’t meet them. I’m sorry I can’t just be like any other boyfriend.” He stopped suddenly, his face blushing crimson. “I mean, I… I…” They had never put a label to what they were, and here was Mike, running his mouth.

Chester lifted his head with a huge grin on his face, completely obliterating the concern from moments ago. “You ready to put a label on us, Mikey?” He knew they still had other issues to talk about, but this topic was far more interesting. 

“Well, I… do you think of me that way? We can’t even publicly be together, and I don’t want to hold you back… or make you lie to your girls.” Mike’s face was still red. “And Lily was the one who said boyfriend,” he mumbled, thoroughly embarrassed.

“Mike… look at me,” Chester whispered. He waited for Mike to lift his stare from the couch and their eyes locked together. “I’m not seeing anyone else. Are you?”

“No,” Mike answered breathlessly.

“Are you buying mushroom covered pizzas for anyone else?”

“Well, no.” The tiniest smile hit Mike’s lips.

“Any late night, far away iHop syrup runs?”

“Nuh-uh.” Now Mike was grinning.

“Well, I haven’t let anyone else ride in Christine-”

“Christine? Like from the movie?” Mike paused while Chester nodded enthusiastically. “You know Christine was a Plymouth Fury, right?”

“Shhhh,” Chester hushed him, sliding over the leather couch cushion and clamping a hand over Mike’s mouth. He felt his stomach clench at the sight of Mike’s big brown eyes staring at him from over his hand. “Most people can’t tell a difference. And like I said, I don’t let just anyone ride in her. Or drive out of my way for pancakes, or take them shopping. Or keep secrets for. I decided you were boyfriend material on that first coffee date. So, if you aren’t seeing anyone else, and I’m not seeing anyone else…” Chester dropped his hand from Mike’s mouth, caressing his thumb over Mike’s bottom lip and chin. “What do you say?”

Without a word, Mike leaned forward, closing the inches between them, connecting their lips in what had become a familiar embrace over the last month. He felt Chester’s hand slide down and around his neck, his fingertips brushing against the bottom of his hair as they kissed. Mike’s hand went right to Chester’s shirt, landing softly between his nipples and latching on as though it were the only thing holding them together. They were both lost, Chester gently sucking on Mike’s bottom lip for a moment before Mike invited him in, the parting of his lips the invitation Chester had been waiting for. 

Mike was warm and soft, his full lips perfect as Chester slid his tongue across them, his fingers moving through Mike’s hair and pressing him closer at the same time. He felt Mike’s hand, the one that wasn’t holding tightly to the front of his shirt, slide around his waist and boldly tuck itself into the waistband of his jeans and underwear, lightly stroking the skin of his very lower back. It sent an instant jolt to his cock, and he knew he had to cool them down before they got carried away. It was a school night. He had to go home and be there when his girls returned. He had to figure out a way to tell them they couldn’t meet his boyfriend yet, but they would eventually. _Boyfriend. I’m Mike Shinoda’s boyfriend._

Mike’s tongue followed Chester’s as he pulled away, prolonging the kiss as he took his turn exploring and teasing. Even though he wanted more, Mike knew their time was limited. Reluctantly, he moved his hand up Chester’s back, smoothing his fingers over the soft skin there as their kiss finally broke, and he opened his eyes to look directly into the warm caramel eyes he adored. 

“That’s my yes, in case you didn’t know,” Mike breathed, smiling as Chester looked at him. 

“I don’t know if I understood you clearly,” Chester responded, a brief smile crossing his lips. “You might need to say yes again.”

“You’re so bad,” Mike whispered, pulling Chester back into him and creating another kiss that ended far too soon. “Better?”

“Absolutely.” Chester feathered his fingers along Mike’s neck and watched his boyfriend’s eyes close at the sensation. “You’re really something else, Mike Shinoda. You don’t need to worry about anything. You’re worth waiting for.”

Mike opened his eyes to look at Chester. “I’m getting awfully tired of waiting for things.”

“Me, too.” 

They looked at each other for a moment, both of them thinking about what could come next. Mike was thinking about his bed, deeming the sheets clean enough. Chester was thinking about the couch, which was clearly wide enough for the two of them to lay on together. In the end, neither of them made a move because Mike’s mouth opened, his brain requesting information that his dick didn’t care about.

“So… as your boyfriend… I’d like to know a little more about the rest of what Lily said.” _Damn it, Mike, why would you ask that right now with him looking at you the way he is? Stupid, stupid!_

Chester pulled back a little, running his hand from Mike’s neck, down his chest and nesting above his bellybutton as he let out a long sigh. “The depression?” Mike nodded, and Chester decided he’d be as straightforward as possible. “I’ve always tried to be honest with the girls. Open. I don’t want my issues to be their issues. When they were eight I told them I was going to start dating again, and had to talk them about what that was going to look like. That it would be different than having mom around. I’d been on and off anti-depressants since they were born, and it’s probably obvious why. My whole life was a lie, but my girls were everything to me. I wanted to keep that facade for them. I told you Lila was the one who realized that Tal and I were happier apart. She was six when she told me that, Mike. Six.”

Mike nodded his encouragement to keep going, his hand moving to rest on Chester’s hip.

“I don’t remember when we talked about the pill daddy takes every day to help him with his moods. But they know that sometimes I need some help. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for them, Mike, but it has some at a lot of personal sacrifice. My dreams are on hold until I raise them into strong women. Nothing is more important than that. I don’t want anyone in my life that can’t help me with that, who won’t commit to me and my girls. I know that’s asking a lot- but you already said yes.” Chester grinned, and moved his hand to grab Mike’s, giving it a squeeze. “I’ve been working with this depression long enough that I know when things are getting bad and when I need more help. And I’ll tell you this. Since you came into my life, it’s been easier. You’ve sparked new energy into me, the part of my life that isn’t 100% dedicated to my girls. I feel like there’s something else to look forward to besides them.”

“That’s how I feel, too,” Mike whispered in amazement. “Like I woke up and started living again once we started dating.” He didn’t know Chester felt that way about him, that they had both brought something new into each other’s lives. It was a thrilling revelation.

Chester leaned over to leave a kiss on Mike’s cheek. “I think it was meant to be,” he said softly. “I’m in this for the long haul, Mikey, and I think you are, too. Now we just need school to end so we can see how the girls handle it.” He stopped and looked at Mike’s wide eyes. “It will be fine, I mean, you already know them. It’s just a different role. We’ll figure out the best way to ease them into it, but until then… they’ll just have to be patient.” He hummed in amusement, mostly to himself. “They’re really bad at being patient.”

“I bet they get that from you,” Mike murmured, his eyes focused on Chester’s lips again. 

A breathy chuckle escaped from Chester’s throat. “You know it. I work on my patience every day.”

Lexie made a move from under the couch, sticking her paw out and batting at Mike’s ankle. “Lex, you sure know how to ruin a mood,” Mike complained even though he smiled down at his cat. “Go back under the table.”

“You know I need to go anyway. I have to be home when Tal gets Lily and Lila back. I’ll think about what to say to them on the way home, okay? I’ll let them know that we’re just a few weeks away, and that you aren’t oppositional to kids, and things are going great.” Chester slid off the couch, sending Lexie back under the coffee table. He held his hand out for Mike to take. “If you think of any good reasons to put them off, let me know.”

Mike nodded. He didn’t want Chester to go, but he knew it was necessary. “You could always tell them a little bit of the truth,” he said as they walked to the front door. “Tell them I have a job that’s interfering right now, but soon it won’t be a problem anymore. You can be vague, but it’s still the truth. I want you to be able to be truthful about me to them, Chester. You seem to really take that seriously with them.”

“I do,” Chester agreed. He didn’t know he could fall any harder for Mike, but hearing him try to come up with a way to be honest with Lily and Lila warmed his heart more than he thought possible. It wouldn’t do any good to get carried away with fantasies at the moment, but Chester could clearly see Mike being a great step-dad. He could imagine Lucy the Pomeranian and Lexie the tuxedo cat becoming best buddies. He could imagine waking up every morning with Mike’s gorgeous sleepy face right next to his.

Chester took a deep breath before he wrapped his arms around Mike. “Thank you. For letting me explain myself and not just freaking out about what Lily said. For wanting this to work as much as I do. Thank you for giving my girls a chance.” He turned his face into Mike’s hair and breathed in, marveling that his hair still smelled shower fresh after a day at work.

“Thank you for being willing to wait. It means a lot, Ches.” Mike returned the embrace, wishing for one more kiss.

“Ches?” Chester eased back to find Mike’s eyes. “Relationship status leveled up and a nickname, all in one day,” Chester teased before he kissed Mike gently. “I like it.”

“You better go,” Mike whispered, brushing his lips over Chester’s cheek. “I’ll see you Friday night… right?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Chester answered, stepping back and blowing Mike a kiss before he turned to the door. “And don’t worry… I’ll text you later.”

****  
TBC


	10. The Spring Concert

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special shout out to @Music_Nobody19 for your twitter love and for checking on the story. This chapter you’ve been waiting on is for you!

Mike set down his end of the riser and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. “Thank god that’s the last one,” he commented to Rob, who also looked totally over everything. “You know, we say it every year - we should have the spring concert without risers. By the end of May, I’m way too tired to be moving this stuff around.”

“We _do_ say that every year.” Rob looked around the stage and sighed. “At least we’re done. The kids can do the rest. I’m not moving any timpani tonight.” Moving timpani was the worst. They were heavy, cumbersome, and the wheels too tiny for their girth. 

“Agreed.” Mike sat down on the end of the trumpet riser and looked out into the auditorium. It was hard to believe it was already the end of the school year. Year ten for him, and six for Rob. _Six years already for him. Before I know it he’ll be wanting to go off and be on his own somewhere. It will suck to lose him._ “Is it just me, or did this year go by super fast?”

Rob sat down next to Mike and picked up his stainless steel water bottle, unscrewing the lid and taking a long drink. “Seriously. It feels like we were just doing the start of the year paperwork.”

Mike made a face. “At least you’ve finally figured out that my methodology on organizing that paperwork is superior to your way of doing it. It only took you two weeks this year.” He elbowed Rob in the side jovially. Even though he was tired, this concert put him one day closer to the end of the school year, and the end of the school year meant he no longer had to hide Chester. 

“Fine, fine. Your way is better,” Rob agreed with exaggerated grumpiness, thinking back to the disaster his first year had been. Mike had delegated start of the year paperwork to him, complete with meticulous step-by-step instructions that Rob proceeded to ignore. That error cost him two months of conference periods while he tried to sort it out, and even then, neither of them were completely sure it was all done correctly. It had been a conflict from their early days of teaching together that Mike loved to bring up every chance he got. 

“I know _that’s_ right!” Mike exclaimed, slapping Rob on the leg before he stood up. “So, word on the street is Lacey Armstrong is coming to the concert tonight,” Mike said slyly, giving Rob the side-eye. The change in Rob’s demeanor was instant.

“Who’d you hear that from?” Rob asked instantly, his voice a little too eager.

“I overheard some of the kids talking about their other teachers that are coming.” Mike shrugged causally, pretending not to notice Rob’s interest. “I’m sure she’s only coming to see the kids, though. Nothing for you to get worked up about.” He started to walk off the stage, headed back to the band hall for chair and stand racks, and to find kids to finish the set up for him.

Rob bounced up from the riser and screwed the lid on his water. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

Mike could hear the little tones of disappointment in Rob’s voice and felt bad. Rob’s crush had been going on all year, but he’d never found the courage to do anything about it. Mike reached out to pat him on the back. “Hey, you never know. She could be interested.”

Rob snorted gently through his nose. “I see how it is, now that you’re getting some you can be generous, huh?” he shot back.

There was a silence as Mike debated what his response should be to that comment. He and Rob were more than colleagues and more like best friends, but he didn’t know if that closeness extended to discussing his sex life - or the fact that he and Chester hadn’t crossed that line yet. _We’re so close. Just a few more days of school. We’ve both managed to keep from tearing off each other’s clothes, which is amazing considering how hot he is. I don’t even know what I want to do first. It’s been forever since I had sex._

“Mike?”

Mike’s attention snapped over to Rob. “Yeah. Yep. You don’t want to hear about it.” He brushed off the implication that he and Chester were sleeping together as they entered the band hall, and his focus instantly went to the kids tossing a tennis ball around. “Morgan! Bailey!” he barked, “no throwing things in the band hall, what’s wrong with you?” 

“Sorry, Mr. Shinoda,” both students said in unison before Morgan piped up. “We were waiting on you to finish with the risers so we could do the set up for you and got bored.” He smiled sheepishly in Mike’s direction. 

“Well, it’s ready for you guys,” Mike said, his stern tone softening a bit. They were good kids, and they were there to help. He didn’t want to yell at them too much. “Bring me that tennis ball,” he added as an afterthought. “I don’t need you bouncing it all around in the auditorium.” Mike held his hand out and Morgan dropped the ball in it, then scampered off with the others to take chairs and stands to the stage.

Rob was already back at his desk, a protein bar in his hand. “Another tennis ball?” Without being asked, he opened his top left desk drawer so Mike could drop it in. “That makes six now. One for each year I’ve been here.”

Mike plopped down in his desk chair and picked up his phone. There were three texts from Chester. “Yeah, somebody has to give it a try every year or so.” He glanced at the messages. _So ready to see your last concert tonight. Your ass looks great in jeans. * I can’t go out after the concert, but I’ll talk with you before bed. * Okay, I know you’re busy. I’ll see you tonight. Backstage maybe. Oooh, can I be your groupie?_ Mike’s grin was wide after the last text. Being on stage as a band director wasn’t like being a singer in a rock band, but Chester made him feel like a rockstar. 

“The kids should get the set up done pretty fast,” he said to Rob while he flirted with Chester via text.

**Mike:** _You can always be my groupie. And make sure you sit close to the front so you can see my ass better._

“Mr. Bourdon! Do you want us to move the percussion equipment to the stage?” Bryce stuck his head in the office but his feet didn’t cross the threshold. All of the band kids were well trained. Nobody came into the office unless they were invited.

“Sure,” Rob answered easily. “Less work for me. You guys can take everything and set it up. You know what to do.”

Mike looked over from his desk. “You do a great job training them up, Bourdie. I love the end of the year, when they all know how to function and what to do… starting over sucks.” It was a standard end of the school year gripe, but this year the sting was a little less than normal. Knowing he could be public about Chester soon had Mike looking forward to the end of school more than he ever had before.

**Chester:** Front and center. To take pictures of the girls, of course. Try to keep your sexy ass out of my way.

Mike smirked. He was going to be extra sure to stand right in front of Lily and Lila during the concert. “Don’t let me forget to thank Hahn tonight before it’s all over,” he said to Rob, who hadn’t responded to his end of the year complaining. “I always forget administration.”

“Got it.” Rob added a reminder to the sticky note on the front of his music. “If you don’t do it by the last piece, I’ll remind you.” He stood up, stretching his arms over his head. “I’m so ready to get this done. Then just four more days of school. Finals. And then summer.” Rob flashed Mike a grin. “I’m going to be gone all summer. Floating the river. Rock climbing, hiking… you’re always welcome to come along, you know. Maybe Chester is an outdoor kind of guy.”

Mike shook his head. Even if Chester was an outdoor kind of guy, they had a lot of indoor activities they needed to catch up on for the six weeks of summer Mike didn’t have band on his schedule. “We’ve got some plans,” he answered vaguely, then turned to start gathering up the things he needed for the concert. “Not sure getting drunk in a tube on the river is on the agenda. But maybe Lacey…” Mike shot Rob a grin and a wink.

“Lacey,” Rob mumbled under his breath, glancing toward the door. “Let’s just see if she even makes it to the concert tonight.”

****

Mike stood at the microphone, looking out into the dark auditorium as he spoke before the final selection of the concert. It always freaked him out to talk into the blackness. _I wish they would turn the house lights up when I’m talking. It’s so weird to just speak into the void._ He knew the auditorium was packed - he’d seen it before the lights went down - but he couldn’t see any faces past the first two rows that were barely lit by the stage lights. 

Front and center was Chester Bennington, proud father, snapping pictures of his baby girls on his phone while Talinda sat at his side. Mike tried his best to ignore his boyfriend and keep his mind on the concert.

“And finally, I’d like to thank two really important people. My brother, the “cool” Mr. Shinoda, for being a great department chair, and Mr. Hahn, for all of his support as our principal this year. We have a great administrative team here at McAuthur Middle School.” Mike waited as the applause died down, then announced, “our final piece on tonight’s concert is _Themes from Star Wars._ ”

All of the students on stage were trying to contain their excitement. They’d been begging Mike all year to play the _Star Wars_ arrangement, and he’d finally given in, despite his long standing rule against playing movie and pop music on the spring concert. There was a part of him that needed to break some rule, any rule, since he was holding so tightly to the “no-sex-until-school-is-out” rule he’d been following since meeting Chester in January.

He was barely paying attention to the band as he conducted through the music. Mike’s mind was on Chester and their timeline. Meeting for coffee back in February left simultaneously like yesterday and a lifetime ago. Finals and school couldn’t get over with fast enough. His eyes moved over his students, the eighth graders he wouldn’t teach anymore as they moved on to the high school, the seventh graders who would become next year’s leaders, and the sixth graders who were just starting to become competent on their instrument. He felt the familiar mix of relief and nostalgia, and then his eyes landed on Lily and Lila.

Mike could tell Lila was playing every note, and Lily was getting some of them. Her passion seemed to be theater, and that was fine with Mike. When they got course selection information for the next year, he was pleased to see Lily had chosen advanced theater, and would no longer be in band. Lila would be in Rob’s band in seventh grade, and Mike would no longer be teaching the Bennington twins. It was a green light for his and Chester’s relationship to go to the next step, and he couldn’t wait.

Before he knew it, the last piece was over, and he was standing at the side of the stage, clapping as his students basked in the applause of their parents and teachers. It had been a successful evening. Rob came to stand next to him on the stage, and the house lights went up so they could see. The auditorium was standing room only, and Mike was proud of their kids. It would only be a few minutes before they dismissed them all to their parents, and then it would be an endless stream of photo opportunities until the last student was satisfied. 

The first hand Mike shook was Mr. Hahn’s, who then excused himself out into the lobby to do the thing he did best - public relations with parents. Mike saw Jason hanging back while he took a picture with his top band tuba section, who were all eighth graders moving on to the high school. Jason was talking to Lacey Armstrong, and another woman was with them. She was tall, thin, and beautifully blonde. As soon as Mike had the opportunity he turned to Rob and hissed, “you better go talk to Lacey. She made it… and she brought a friend.”

Rob’s eyes hit the trio and Mike could swear he saw his assistant’s jaw drop. “Wow. I’ll be right back,” he mumbled, not even looking at Mike. 

Mike laughed to himself, watching Rob for just a second before he took another picture, then another. There was a line of students and parents waiting for him, and he patiently took every picture and spoke to each parent, until all that was left were the Bennington twins, and Talinda and Chester. Mike’s smile was genuine as he greeted them all.

“Mr. Shinoda! That was so much fun!” Lila exclaimed, and before anyone could stop her, Lila’s skinny arms were around Mike, hugging him. 

Chester’s eyes hit his boyfriend’s immediately, and he could only laugh at the stunned look on Mike’s face. “Mr. Shinoda,” he said, his eyes shining he extended his hand for a handshake, “what a great concert. I really enjoyed watching my girls on stage, they looked like they were having a great time.”

As Lila stepped back, Mike reached out for Chester’s hand. They shook hands briefly, their eyes holding for just a second too long as the Lila watched them. Lily was looking at the pictures on Talinda’s phone of the concert and missed the look between the two men, but Lila watched with interest as Mike and Chester spoke to each other about the concert. 

“Thank you for all of your help this year,” Talinda offered, smiling warmly at Mike. “Lila always has stories to tell about band. We’re so happy she’s found something she loves.” She pulled Lila in for a quick hug and then held her hand out for her phone. “Lily, let me have my phone so I can take a picture of you two with Mr. Shinoda. Dad took pictures but they were all while you were playing and Mr. Shinoda’s back was to us.”

Mike couldn’t stop himself from giving Chester a cheeky grin, and almost laughed when Chester wiggled his eyebrows in response. They both knew Chester was not only taking pictures of the twins, but also of Mike’s rear end. “Okay, ladies, let’s get a good picture for your mom.” Mike’s arms went around both girls’ shoulders, one on each side of him as they all smiled. He congratulated them each on a great ending to the year, and that was it. Chester winked at him when he thought nobody was looking, and then the Benningtons were gone, on their way out for a family dinner while Mike finished tearing down the set up and returning things to the band hall. 

“That was a fast concert,” Rob said as he caught up with Mike, who was pushing a cart of chairs.

“Yeah, it went well,” Mike answered vaguely. He’d been hoping to steal a moment with Chester after the concert, but it didn’t look like it was going to happen. The auditorium was clear, except for a few kids who had stayed behind to help move things, and Jason, Lacey, and the new person. “So, who’s the new chick?” he asked, his voice low. 

Rob leaned closer to Mike. “Her name’s Vanessa. _Miss_ Evigan. She’s gonna be teaching history next year. She’s smoking hot.” He resisted the urge to look over his shoulder at her. “She’s Lacey’s friend. And apparently they were talking about me, and Vanessa wanted to come to the concert.” Rob pushed his glasses up and gave an embarrassed smile. “They asked me to go get a drink when we’re finished here.”

Mike stopped right in his tracks. “ _They?_ As in, you’ve got a date with both of them?”

“I don’t think it’s a _date_ ,” Rob denied, though his body language said otherwise.

“Damn, Lacey’s crazier than I thought,” Mike mused, both hands landing on his hips. “You better be here tomorrow, Bourdie. That’s all I have to say. I’m not sitting through finals by myself because you got caught up with these blondes. I know how you are.”

Rob scoffed at Mike’s choice of words. “It’s been a while since I did anything like that,” he fussed. “I’ll be here. I know there’s no days off in the McArthur band.”

“Right.” Mike looked around, and decided to dismiss the students who were helping. It was close enough for the evening. “Well, I think we’re finished here,” he announced, patting his pockets for his phone and keys. He missed the incredulous looks of his students, who were used to putting away every last item before he declared the night complete. There were chair racks everywhere, and percussion equipment still to be moved, but Mike was finished. He wanted to get home, get a shower, and talk to Chester. 

A chorus of “good night, Mr. Shinoda! Good night, Mr. Bourdon!” went up as the kids left out the back door to meet their parents. Mike went to lock up just as Jason strolled through the band hall door. 

“Hey, you want to go grab a bite?” Jason looked around the room and immediately back-tracked. “Oh. You’re not anywhere close to finished, are you?” He knew his brother. Leaving chaos overnight was not his style.

But Mike surprised him when he answered, “yeah, a quick bite would be great. This will wait until morning.” He waved his hand around the space and rolled his eyes. “Rob’s got a hot date, so we’re leaving it for tonight.”

“I heard!” Jason whispered loudly. “Lacey’s got a friend-”

Mike held his hand up. “I don’t need to know. I’m surprised you didn’t get dragged along.” He turned and shouted in the direction of the office. “I’m out, Bourdie! Have fun!”

Rob came out of the office, his giant lunch bag that held all his small containers and shaker bottles in one hand. “I’m out, too. Lacey and Vanessa await.” 

Mike turned back to Jason as Rob hurried out without another glance. “So… the burger palace?” 

“Where else?” Jason answered. He was still in shock that Mike had decided to go out after the concert. “Good concert, tonight. You glad it’s over?” They were walking out to their cars, and Mike paused before he opened his door.

“Really, really glad it’s over,” he said, taking a deep breath. He decided right then was going tell Jason about Chester while they ate. The end of school was only four days away, and Mike wanted to make sure he let his brother in on the secret before he found out some other way. This seemed like as good a time as any. “You taking your car so you can just leave from Mooya?” 

Jason nodded. “Yeah, I’ll follow you over. I think it’s the first time I’ve heard you say you were ready for school to end, Mike.” He looked across the top of Mike’s car with his hand on the handle of the mini-van. 

“Yeah, I’ll explain while we’re eating.” Mike was in his car before Jason could respond. _I’ll just come out and tell him I’m dating someone. He should be happy for me. Right? All he’s been doing lately is begging me to get out of the house. Him and mom both. So this should be fine. Even if it’s a parent. But… he’s only a parent for four more days. Just four._ The thought brought an instant lift to Mike’s tired features. After all the dates at home and all the nights on the phone, he and Chester were finally going to be free to be seen in public. The thought was exciting. He didn’t know what they were going to do first. 

Mike waited through some end of the year talk and talk of the concert before he put down his half eaten cheeseburger and glanced at his watch. He didn’t want the conversation with Jason to take long. He still expected to talk to Chester before he went to sleep, and he wanted to have his shower before he got into bed. It was now or never, and Mike really needed it to be now.

“So…” he started, watching Jason dip a french fry in ketchup, “I’ve got something to share on Sunday with Mom and Dad, but I wanted you to know first.”

Jason looked up from his meal, he head cocked to the side in question. “Yeah? What’s up?” Mike looked nervous, and he wasn’t sure what was about to come out of his brother’s mouth.

“I, I’m dating someone,” Mike confessed in a rush, his cheeks blushing faintly. “Actually, I have been for a few months.” _There. That wasn’t so bad._

“Months?” Jason sat back in his chair, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes slightly. “And you didn’t tell me? That’s not cool. I think it’s great you’ve met someone. I’ve been worried about you.” He didn’t want to say how many hours he’d spend debating Mike’s mental state with his wife or his parents. There had been a drastic change in his brother when Brad left, and they had all worried over him for months. The past few months had seen a subtle shift, and Jason was grateful for it, especially now that he knew why. It wasn’t just time passing and Mike getting over Brad. There was someone new, someone who was giving Mike a purpose again. 

Mike’s shoulders relaxed. He picked up his burger and looked at Jason over the top of the bun before he said, “it’s Chester Bennington.” He stuffed a bite in his mouth before Jason could demand more information.

The confusion washed over Jason’s face slowly as he stared at his brother. “Bennington? Do you mean… like… the twins? _The_ Bennington twins? You’re dating the twin’s _dad_? How?” The fries were forgotten as Jason tried to process the information Mike dropped on him so casually.

“It’s really a long story,” Mike started, and Jason raised his eyebrows. “I guess the short version is, well, do you remember that parent-teacher conference?” A memory of the spark in his handshake with Chester brought a smile to his lips. 

Jason snorted. “How could I forget? Your first conference in ten years. _Everybody_ knew that was happening.” 

“I’ve had conferences before,” Mike dismissed, fixing his gaze on his hamburger. “Anyway, there was this static electricity problem, and things just went from there. He asked me to go get coffee after I’d been tutoring the girls for a while, and slowly it developed into us being pretty serious.” He lifted his eyes and looked at Jason. “We’ve seen each other every weekend he doesn’t have the girls for months.”

Jason leaned forward and put both elbows on the table - something neither of them ever did due to their strict upbringing. He clasped his hands in front of his mouth and regarded Mike seriously. “Do they know?”

“Lily and Lila?” 

“Yeah.” Jason felt like he was holding his breath as he waited for Mike to respond. It was one thing to date a parent, and another to do it openly while responsible for that student’s grades. Jason didn’t want to have to lecture Mike, or be put in a position to have to tell their principal about the relationship.

“Not yet. We’ve been really careful. I know I’m not supposed to be dating him with the girls in my class and all, but…” Mike sat back and blew out a sigh. “I couldn’t help it, Jay. We clicked. Sometimes you just know, you know?” He threw up his hands helplessly. “We’ve been really cautious. I haven’t even been to his place yet. We’re taking it slow, he’s going to tell the girls over the summer, and it will be fine. I get along great with Lila.”

Jason didn’t miss that Mike had only mentioned one of the twins. “Is she going to be in Rob’s band next year?” Jason asked, still watching Mike closely. “And what about Lily?”

Mike’s eyebrows knitted together as soon as Jason mentioned Lily. “Lily’s dropping band for theater, which is fine. And yeah, Lila really improved a lot once she decided to try. She’ll be in Rob’s band, so it won’t be a problem anymore. We just have to get past telling them. They know Ches is dating someone, they just don’t know who. So it won’t be a total surprise.”

Jason’s ears didn’t miss the pet name. He smiled behind his hands. “Well, okay. I know you’re happier. It’s been obvious that something was up with you ever since you ditched me for the Dodgers game.” He sat back and picked up his coke. “So you’re telling Mom this weekend? She will want every detail, you know.”

Mike was finished with his food. Now that the big secret was revealed, and Jason was over the initial surprise, Mike was antsy and ready to go home. “I know. I’ll have to bring him for dinner. That will be a whole other step. Let me get Mom settled down before I bring him home, or she’ll scare him off with her enthusiasm.” Mike rolled his eyes. “Maybe she’ll stop talking about Brad all the time. It will give her something new to focus on.” He bit down on his bottom lip as the thought of his ex-husband filtered through his mind. He didn’t miss Brad, not anymore, and he wanted his parents to stop worrying about him, too.

“I hope this guy is ready,” Jason said. “Being part of the Shinoda clan is a commitment. Sunday dinners and all,” he teased.

Mike couldn’t hide his smile as he poked a fry into his ketchup. “I don’t think commitment is going to be a problem with Chester.” 

****

Chester pulled on his boxers and grabbed his phone from the vanity, ready to hop into bed and have his nightly conversation with Mike. He and Talinda had taken the girls out for pasta, and it was a full hour past the time he normally talked to Mike on the phone.

_But that’s fine. He still had things to wrap up at school, and then he probably needed to eat, too. And shower. I know he always showers before he gets into bed. Just like how he showers before I come over. He always smells so clean._

He tugged the navy blue, orange, and white color blocked blanket back and arranged his two pillows in their navy blue pillow cases against the dark gray headboard. All that was left was a trip down the hallway to peek in on the girls and make sure they were settled for the night, that their teeth had been brushed and their phones were plugged into the family charging station in the kitchen downstairs. _Just a few more minutes until I can talk to my Mikey._

_This_ had quickly become the best part of Chester’s day. It didn’t matter how tired he was, hearing Mike’s voice before he went to sleep was a necessity.

“Dad?”

Chester looked up to see Lila standing in his bedroom doorway in short pink pajamas, her damp hair twisted up into a bun on top of her head. “What’s up, baby girl?” he asked, dropping his phone on the bed before he walked around it to get closer to his daughter. 

Lila looked down the hallway toward her sister’s room before she stepped in and wrapped her arms around Chester’s middle. “I love you, Dad. Thanks for letting me be in band. I know it’s expensive.”

Chester was slightly taken aback. “You’re welcome, Lil. I’d do anything for you, you know that. Anything you want. That’s what Daddy is here for.” He gave her a tight squeeze in return, and waited until she let go before he loosened his arms around her. It was one of the things he remembered reading when the girls were just infants. One of the books he devoured about how to be a good parent instructed him to never be the first person to release a hug, and he thought that was a great rule in a sea of conflicting advice. He always held on as long as his daughters wanted to embrace.

“I really like Mr. Shinoda,” Lila added, stepping out of Chester’s arms and falling over onto the foot of the bed. She laid face down, her body spread across the blanket. “Lily does, too, even though she decided to to theater. Mr. Farrell will probably make her the lead in every play next year, you know.”

“Well, he’ll have to spread the roles around, Lily knows that. I think,” Chester corrected, a furrow of worry between his brows. He knew that Lily sometimes lost sight of other people around her, and he hated to think her expectations for seventh grade were so high that she’d be crushed when her theater teacher did the right thing and let other students have a chance in the spotlight. 

“Maybe.” Lila rolled over and looked at Chester when he sat down on the end of the bed next to her. “Dad?” 

“Hmm?” Chester glanced over at his phone. The screen was lit briefly with a text, and he knew it was Mike, but Mike was going to have to wait. 

“Your boyfriend. Can we meet him now that school is getting out?” Lila was looking at Chester’s t-shirt instead of his face, a detail he didn’t miss.

“I was thinking about that, actually,” Chester started. “Summer would be a great time for everyone to get to know each other. He’s really looking forward to spending time with you two.”

Lila nodded. “We should take Michael to the painting place,” she offered. “The place where they do the pictures step by step and you follow the instructor? That would be fun.”

Chester raised his eyebrow. It was odd to hear _Michael_ come from his daughter’s lips when he was so used to saying _Mike_ , but that was the compromise he’d settled on when he started to give the girls bits and pieces of information about the man he was dating. “That would be fun,” he agreed. “If nothing else it will be a good laugh. I don’t think any of us are great artists.”

“Maybe Michael is better than you think,” Lila said, sitting up to look at Chester. “Aren’t musicians usually good at art, too?”

Chester felt his heart beat a little faster. “Musicians? Lila, what are you talking about?”

“Dad.” Lila rolled her eyes at him. “Michael is Mr. Shinoda, isn’t he? I could tell from how you were looking at each other after the concert. And it makes sense, why you wouldn’t let us meet him. I figured it out.” She smiled charmingly at Chester, who couldn’t help but smile back.

“Lila, you’ve always been able to read me like a book,” he said, shaking his head in amusement. “Even when you were a baby, you knew when things weren’t quite right with me and your mom. We’ve always had a special connection.” Chester watched Lila’s eyes light up as he motioned between the two of them. “I wanted to be able to tell you myself, but it looks like you’ve figured it out.” He blew out a breath and nodded. “Yes, baby girl, Michael is Mr. Shinoda.”

“Yes!” Lila fist pumped the air the way she’d seen her dad do so many times in her life. “He’s the best, Dad! I’m excited!”

Chester felt an anxiety he didn’t know he’d been carrying around melt away as Lila celebrated. He had hoped the months of secrecy would be worth it, and Lila’s reaction made his heart happy. All that was left was Lily, and he was never quite sure how she would react to change. “Did you tell your sister?” he asked, his eyes shifting to the hallway.

“I wanted to make sure I was right, first,” Lila explained. “Besides, it will probably be better coming from you. You know how she is.” She shrugged and then slid off the mattress. Lucy looked up from her dog bed at the foot of Chester’s big bed, then tucked her head back down into her paws. “Can we please go this weekend? To the painting place? It will be so much fun,” Lila begged, her hands clasped in front of her.

“Let me talk to Mike, okay? And Lily, she might not be ready, yet,” Chester amended as he put his arm around Lila’s shoulders and guided her toward her bedroom. “I know you’re excited, and I am, too, but everyone needs to be ready. It’s important to me that it goes well.”

“I’ll talk to her, too. But not until you do,” Lila whispered as they got to her room, across the hall from Lily’s. “Good night, Daddy,” she added.

Chester felt his heart swell with emotion. Since the girls started middle school, ‘Daddy’ had been left behind in favor of ‘Dad’ - what they considered more grown up - and he hadn’t realized how much he missed it. “Good night, sweetheart,” he called, waiting as Lily got into bed before he turned out her light. “Pancakes in the morning.”

He heard Lila’s happy affirmation as he turned to cross the hall. Lily’s room was already dark, but he poked his head in anyway. “Good night, Lily. Your phone downstairs?” he asked the darkness.

“Yes, Dad,” came Lily’s response. “Good night.”

Chester added, “I love you, girls,” as he went back down the hallway. _All that’s left is telling Lily and Tal. Tal will be fine with it, she doesn’t care as long as he’s good to the girls. I hope Lily takes it as well as Lila. We can’t go on if Lily can’t accept it. I want her to be okay. I want to be able to spend time with all of them together. I want to not have to hold back anymore._

He shut the door to his bedroom and picked up his phone. There were two texts and a missed call from Mike, but the call was only four minutes ago. He didn’t even look at the texts, hitting the call button instead and waiting breathlessly to hear Mike’s sexy voice on the other end. Chester smiled as soon as a sleepy Mike said hello. 

He couldn’t hold back his excitement as he asked without even remembering a greeting, “how do you feel about painting class with the girls on Saturday?”

****  
TBC


	11. Good Mood Mike

Mike looked around the empty band hall. He and Rob had spent the final day of their contract without students, working on summer repair, instrument inventory, and cleaning. It was a Mike Shinoda rule: summer didn’t start until the band hall was spotless, and even the promise of Chester Bennington this year didn’t make him leave his work unfinished.

Rob was laid back in his chair, his feet propped up on the counter by the phone. Every square inch of countertop in the office was clean, all of the papers that accumulated over the last month of trips and contests now in the garbage or the shredding boxes in the teachers’ lounge. Mike was locking away his stapler and the dry erase markers he’d had to purchase with his own money so they didn’t disappear over the summer break. Things had been known to walk away when the custodians cleaned their room.

“Bourdie. We’re finally done,” he said, dropping into his crooked chair to get a moment’s rest before they locked up and left for the summer. 

Rob didn’t even crack his eyes. “I’ve been finished for two hours,” he mentioned casually. “You’ve been over there moving all your crap and locking things up, and humming to yourself. It’s Good Mood Mike. I didn’t want to interrupt.”

“Whatever,” Mike grumbled, even though he was smiling. “I’m always Good Mood Mike.”

That comment brought Rob’s eyes open and he rolled his head on the back of the chair to stare Mike down. “I’m going to go with… no. No, you are not always Good Mood Mike.” He laced his fingers together over his stomach and grinned. “So, what’s this good mood all about? Now that school is over, are you throwing caution to the wind tonight? Going out on the town with your boy toy?” 

“Boy toy?” Mike echoed, his fingertips tingling at the thought of Chester. “There’s no toying over here. This is serious stuff, Bourdie. Not like you with Lacey and Vanessa.” He watched as Rob at least had the decency to blush. “I mean, that’s not serious, is it?”

“You never know how that could end up,” Rob said cheekily. “Did you see that picture of us in the bar on my Instagram story?”

“I did,” Mike answered with an eye roll. “Every straight guys’ dream. A blonde with an apple martini on each arm.” 

“Now _that_ was a great night.” Rob crossed his ankles and then his arms behind his head and grinned. “I should take _them_ camping.” 

Mike shook his head with a laugh. “Neither of those women look like the camping type,” he said drily before he picked up his phone and looked at the time. “And, me and Ches, we aren’t going out tonight. He’s got the girls this weekend. But tomorrow we’re going to _Painting with a Twist_ , all four of us.”

Rob looked at the mixture of fear and excitement on Mike’s face and thoughts of getting Lacey and Vanessa out under the stars somewhere vanished. He turned in his chair, sitting up straight. “You’ve got nothing to be nervous about, Mike. Lila adores you. They’re going to get to see the fun side of you, which you do have, believe it or not. When you’re not in here piloting the plane, you’re a hell of a lot of fun.”

“Piloting the plane is stressful. You can’t blame me for not being fun when there’s so much work to do. Some days I feel like I’m piloting the plane while it’s in the sky, and you’re still building it while I’m flying it.” Mike looked around the barren office. “It’s so crazy how there’s so much to do, constantly, and then all of a sudden, it’s over. It takes me at least a week to wind down.”

“That’s why you should come out in nature with me,” Rob said, closing his eyes with a smile. “The minute you get up on the rocks or out on the water, you forget about this place.”

Mike wasn’t sure that band would ever be far from his mind, no matter how great nature was. “Maybe,” he answered vaguely as Jason popped his head into the office.

“Ready for me to sign off on your end of the year checkout?” Jason asked, a pen in his hand. He looked out into the band hall, where everything was neatly put away for the summer. “You two almost finished in here?”

“We’re about to walk these up to Hahn,” Rob said, pushing his and MIke’s checkout sheets across his desk to Jason. “Mike finally got finished screwing around over there.” He flashed his coworker a teasing grin.

“Whatever, Bourdie. When you’re in charge, you’ll have a shit-ton of stuff to do while your assistant lounges around, too.” Mike shifted his attention to Jason. “You headed home?”

Jason scrawled his initials across the two blanks the department chair was supposed to sign, verifying that the room was clean and teacher computers were shut down and unplugged. “Yeah, I’m done in my room. Gonna go home and have a couple of beers on the patio. I promised I’d grill chicken for dinner tonight. That’s the best part of summer, grilling.” He scooted the papers back to Rob and stood up. “Enjoy your summer, Rob.” Jason pointed his pen at Mike. “I’ll see you on Sunday, then. And I expect to hear all about it.” 

Mike stood up and grabbed his checkout sheet from Rob’s desk. He knew exactly what “it” Jason was referring to. “As long as it’s out of Mom’s earshot, I’ll tell you all about it. Otherwise, you’ll have to wait.” He dismissed the conversation and looked at Rob. “C’mon, let’s go turn these in so we can get out of here.”

“At least text me and tell me how it goes,” Jason begged as he stepped out of the office doorway to make room for Mike and Rob to pass through. “You’re going painting! That’s my kind of thing! You have to send me a picture, at least!” 

“Bye, Jay,” Mike teased with amusement in his voice. “I’ll see what I can do.” He pushed open the heavy door to the main hallway and started toward the front office. He could hear Jason protesting behind him, something about techniques and paint, and wearing clothes he didn’t mind ruining, and something else he couldn’t quite make out. It sounded like a request for a description of the whole date from start to finish, and Mike simply shook his head. _Sometimes, he’s just my annoying little brother._

The principal was nowhere to be found when he and Rob got to the front office. They left their checkout papers tacked to the cork board strip by Mr. Hahn’s door and as they exited the administrative area, ran smack into Mr. Farrell.

“Hey, Dave,” Rob offered cordially, “have a nice summer, man. You deserve a break.”

Dave was all smiles and relaxation. “Gearing up for vacation bible school next week, then we’ve got a teen mission to Honduras! I’m looking forward to it! Either of you have plans?” He gestured between Rob and Mike with his checkout form in his hand.

“I’m out all summer,” Rob answered, and glanced at Mike before he teased, “Mike spends his summers on the couch reading books and petting his cat.”

Mike swatted at Rob’s closest arm in irritation. “I do not. Not _all_ summer, anyway.” He motioned to Dave’s checkout form. “Hahn’s not in the office, we just tacked ours outside his door. Enjoy your church stuff,” he added, moving around Dave. There would be plenty of time for pleasantries next year when he was watching Lily in all the theater productions.

“God willing,” Dave answered as he went to leave his checkout form with the others. “Take care of yourselves this summer!”

Mike was already halfway down the hall. There was nothing left to finish, and he was ready to get home and start his summer. Last year, he’d locked up the band hall and a cold feeling of dread had sunk into his bones. There were no summer vacation plans, nothing to look forward to except his books and Lexie, just as Rob mentioned. But this year, he was excited. The anticipation of being with Chester, of being able to go out to dinner, meet for coffee, take a movie, or even just hang out at home together, made summer so much more appealing. He was ready for life outside the band hall this year, and it started tonight.

“Well, I guess this is it,” Mike said as he and Rob stood next to their vehicles in the parking lot. “I know you always say you’ll be off the grid all summer, but I know you. You’ll be texting me how much you miss me tomorrow morning.”

“I’m not that bad,” Rob scoffed, leaning into the passenger door of his truck to put down his giant lunch bag. He stood back and stretched, looking around the barren parking lot. They were always one of the last teachers to leave for the summer. “I mean, I do miss your cranky ass, but it won’t be tomorrow. The only reason I’ll even think about you is wondering how the painting goes.” He leveled his gaze at Mike. “Seriously, good luck tomorrow. I know it’s a big deal, but just be yourself. Those kids already know you as a teacher. Don’t be hard-ass Mr. Shinoda. Be Good Mood Mike. Okay?”

Mike let out a nervous sigh as he nodded. “Good Mood Mike. Got it. And you, be careful out there in the world. Last thing I want to see when I wake up is an article that starts with ‘Local Band Director Eaten by Sharks’ or some nonsense like that.” 

Rob’s sudden laugh rang loud and clear. “You worry too much. There’s more chance of me falling off a rock than getting eaten by sharks.”

“Jeez, don’t give me anything else to worry about. I kinda need you, Bourdie.” Mike didn’t want to get sentimental, but it was always hard to go from spending so much time together, to hardly seeing each other. “No falling off rocks, no sharks, and be careful with those two women. I won’t have time to find another assistant this late,” he teased, trying to make his worries all about work.

“Ah, I see how it is. Just worried about me as your _colleague_.” Rob and Mike grinned at each other, then Rob reached out and gave Mike a hug. “Bye, man. Text me how it goes, okay?” He walked around the side of his truck and opened the door, waiting for Mike’s response.

Mike turned and opened his door, too. “Will do.” He got in his car, wincing at the heat that hit him before he could turn on the air. _That’s it. Another year behind me._ His eye caught the _Thank you for ten years of dedicated service!_ card on the top of his stack of things he was taking home for the summer. A little pin was attached to the card, and Mike stuck his tongue out at it. _Ten years, and all I get is this little lapel pin. Who even wears those?_

He got home and took the pile of summer work up to his office, making three neat stacks to go through later: things to be done immediately, things that needed to be completed before school started back up, and things that would be nice if he managed to get around to them. Usually he had time in the summer to take care of all three piles, but he was hoping that this summer would be different. Maybe this summer he’d have better things to do than work the entire time. He tore the label pin off the card and stuck it to the bulletin board next to his desk.

Lexie was up under him the moment he went downstairs and into his meticulously clean kitchen. Mike stepped around her, pulling vegetables and chicken from the refrigerator to make a quick stir fry. He julienned the vegetables and diced up his chicken before he went to check the heat on his wok. “Lexie, you’re determined to trip me!” he complained as he stumbled over the cat again. 

He flicked a few drops of water into the wok, satisfied with the sizzle he heard when the water hit the black surface. Mike tossed his chicken in first, letting it brown on the outsides before he added the vegetables, stirring them absently as he wished it were bedtime. He wanted to know how Lily had taken the news, but when he looked at the clock, he realized she probably didn’t even know yet. Chester was going to talk to her after dinner. He shifted his weight back and forth on his feet impatiently as he waited on his dinner to finish cooking. 

Mike stepped away from the wok and opened the refrigerator door again, pulling out the wine he’d opened the night before. As he reached for a glass, he stepped on Lexie’s tail, and she gave him an indignant hiss, then flicked her tail at Mike as she sauntered over to the living room and stretched out in a patch of evening sunshine on the carpet. “Well, I told you to get out of the kitchen,” Mike called to her somewhat irritably. He poured more than the usual amount of wine in the glass - it wasn’t as school night - replaced the bottle, and leaned against the counter, taking a sip as the stir fry sizzled. 

It was a night for dinner in front of the television again, and by the time Mike settled in, his wine in one hand and the remote in the other, Lexie had forgiven him. She jumped up on the coffee table and went to stick her nose in Mike’s bowl before he shooed her away with a socked foot. “Oh, I see how it is. Shun me, then beg for chicken.” He put the remote down and replaced his wine with the bowl of stir-fry, trying to ignore the sad begin eyes of his beloved pet.

Another glass of wine and two bowls of his stir-fry he’d ended up sharing with the cat later, Mike was back in the kitchen, cleaning up. Time was ticking by slowly as he rinsed dishes and put everything in order. It was hard not to pick up the phone and text his boyfriend, but right now was family time, and Mike didn’t want to interfere. Instead he cleaned every surface of the kitchen, then vacuumed the entire downstairs carpets before he sat back down on the couch and mindlessly flipped channels until it was time to head upstairs. 

At two minutes until nine, Mike ran up the stairs and into the bedroom, his excitement to talk to Chester building. He had to shower, brush his teeth, and trim his beard, all before Chester called at nine-thirty. It was the last night they would talk on the phone before he went out with Chester and his twins. It was the last night before they were official in every way. _Well, almost every way. He’s still got to make it through a Shinoda Sunday Dinner._

Chester had taken to calling it “the SSD”, and Mike knew it was the last line to cross, the last big event until he had to go in and tell Hahn before school started back in August. He mulled that thought over while he wadded up his clothes and tossed them in the general direction of the hamper. Lexie had scampered upstairs with him, and now she meowed loudly as Mike’s undershirt smacked her in the face. “Oops, sorry Lex,” Mike called over the sound of the water spraying to life in the shower as she hurried out of the bathroom and under his bed. 

_He’s got the girls this weekend. So I’ll tell Mom and Dad on Sunday. And then, probably not next week, but the next weekend that the girls are at Talinda’s, I’ll take Ches home._ Mike leaned his head back into the water, his eyes closed as he thought about how that would go. _They’ll love him. And Mom will be excited about the kids. She always wanted Brad and I to start a family._

He sighed and reached for his shower gel. _Maybe it would have turned out differently if I’d wanted kids. Or maybe not. And Chester’s kids, they’re different. They’re old enough to have conversations with. I already know them. It’s not the same as adopting a baby. Or a small child. Mom will already be thinking kids, I know her._ Mike dragged the shower puff over his skin quickly as he thought about how to keep his mom from moving his relationship with Chester twenty steps forward in one night. _She’s going to have to understand, we’re taking it slow. There’s kids involved here. We’re not moving in together tomorrow._

The new thought of moving in together caught Mike by surprise. _I haven’t even been to his place. But if it came to that, we’d probably move into his place because of the girls._ A premature twinge of sadness hit him at the thought of leaving his townhome behind. Everything about his home was carefully constructed exactly the way he wanted it, but the bottom line was, it was two bedrooms where a minimum of three would be required. _I shouldn’t even be thinking about this. Bring it back, Mike. There’s still hanging out with Lily and meeting my parents, telling Hahn, and everything else. Like actually freely dating. That comes before moving in together, so calm down._

Mike finished his shower routine and toweled off. Lexie was back, sitting on the vanity waiting for him. “Lex, would you want to move?” he asked his cat as he stepped into his boxers and pajama bottoms. “Do you think you can live with a dog and two kids?” He reached for his electric razor as Lexie watched him, her tail flicking lazily from left to right and back again. “I’ll still let you sleep in the bed, but you’ll have to share with Ches. Don’t you even think you’re going to wedge your way between us.”

Lexie simply yawned and scrubbed one paw over her eye and ear a few times. Mike smiled at her, then turned his attention to the mirror while he carefully trimmed his beard. “I know, it’s bedtime. I’ll let you lay on me while I talk to Ches.” 

The cat was waiting, perched atop his pillow, when he finished in the bathroom and flipped off the lights. It was nine twenty-nine, and as he climbed into the bed and under the blankets, the display changed to nine-thirty, and then it lit up with Chester’s call.

“Hey,” Mike answered, his excitement not tempered in the least. “How did it go?”

Chester let out a laugh. “No, ‘hey, I missed you, how was your day?’” he teased. 

“You know,” Mike tried to back up a few steps, “I meant all that. I missed you. How was your day?”

“She took it fine. Lila got her excited about painting tomorrow, so I think that will be a good first step,” Chester answered the first questions instead, and he heard Mike’s exhale of relief. “Mike, you’re a mess. It’s going to be great. Lila’s excitement is pretty contagious. She’s totally stoked to meet _Mike_ and she’s not even thinking about _Mr. Shinoda._ ” 

“I just keep thinking about how weird it was, as a kid, to run into your teacher in the grocery store, or a restaurant, or something.” Mike picked at the top of his gray and while blanket as he fretted, but Chester was laughing.

“It’s going to be fine,” he said, and Mike could imagine the grin on his face. “Lily asked me if I was really sure that Mr. Shinoda was fun, but she’s on board. They’re both dying to be around my boyfriend. This will be a first.”

“Don’t say that!” Mike fussed. “Now there’s this whole new level of pressure. They’ve got a whole idea built up in their heads now. I don’t know if I can do this.” He felt the panic rising as he thought about making non-music conversation with Chester’s girls. 

“Mike. Stop.” Chester put his hand out in front of him, as though Mike could see it. He let there be a few seconds of silence before he said, in the most soothing voice he had, “they’re going to love you. How could they not? You’re everything that I want, and I would never waste our time if I didn’t think they would love you as much as I do.”

Mike’s ears picked up the word love and his stomach fluttered. He closed his eyes and listened to Chester continue to talk him down in his calming tone, but all he could think about was that Chester had mentioned love. For the entire rest of the conversation, all Mike could focus on was that one word. He wanted so badly for it to be true, and not just a casual misuse of the word in place of something more innocuous. 

“Mike?”

He heard Chester call his name, and he knew he’d been daydreaming again. It was something Mike had become increasingly more guilty of since his relationship with Chester started months ago. “I’m here, Ches. Sorry. I’m not freaking out. I, I’m just anxious. Ready to get it over with.”

“We all are. You’ll see, it’s going to be great.”

Mike nodded his head, and the conversation shifted to lighter topics until it was time for bed. He was struggling to keep his eyes open by the time they said their good nights, and made promises for the next day. Mike plugged in his phone and set it on the nightstand, then flicked off his lamp. Lexie was fast asleep next to him, and he curled up on his side, his back against the cat, thinking about what it would be like to have Chester in his bed, against his back instead. When Mike fell asleep, he was still thinking about Chester’s words, and imagining the moment when they looked into each other’s eyes and said _I love you_ for the first time. 

***

The next evening, Mike was pacing nervously in front of the painting studio, checking his clothes in the reflection of the store windows every few steps. He and Chester had agreed that meeting at _Painting With a Twist_ was the right way to do their first date with the kids. No shared rides tonight. Just a few shared hours together at the painting class, then everyone back to their own houses. _We’ll talk before bed and he can tell me how it went, all the things they said._

He’d just turned around to walk down the sidewalk again when he saw Chester’s Jeep pull into a parking space right by the front door. _This is it, then._ Mike slid his sweaty palms over his ripped blue jeans and then straightened his camouflage jacket over his simple white t-shirt. His brown boots felt heavy as he walked toward the Jeep, his heart pounding anxiously in his chest.

Lila was out of the car first, her black hair pulled into a high ponytail that shook with her excitement. “Hi!” She exclaimed, skipping up onto the sidewalk and surprising Mike with a hug. “This is going be so much fun, Mr. Shinoda. I mean, Mike. Dad said on the way here that we can call you Mike, but at school we have to call you Mr. Shinoda, like everyone else. Is that okay, Mr. Shinoda?” Lily was practically bouncing up and down on the sidewalk as she rambled, and Mike couldn’t help but laugh.

“Yes, Lila, you can call me Mike. We’re not at school.” He smiled down at her fondly before his eyes skipped over to Chester, who was calmly headed his way with Lily in tow. 

Chester’s eyes were bright with amusement. He flashed Mike a smile and watched his boyfriend give him the quick once-over. He knew he looked good, his tight black v-neck and skinny jeans, his combats and the skull and crossbones plugs in his ears, and the glitter in Mike’s eyes confirmed it. “Lila, give Mike some breathing room,” he instructed, laughing a little at his daughter’s enthusiasm. He let Lila step back and he moved in, pecking a sweet kiss to Mike’s cheek. “Hey,” he said softly, crinkling his nose at Mike while Lila and Lily stood to the side.

“You ready to do this?” Mike asked Chester, then looked at the girls. Lily was smiling tentatively at him, much less exuberant than her sister. “Hello, Lily,” he offered with a genuine smile.

“Hi, Mike,” Lily answered, then looked at the sidewalk. Her reaction took Mike by surprise. He hadn’t expected her to be shy, but she looked completely out of her comfort zone. 

“Come on, let’s go inside!” Lila exclaimed, reaching for Lily’s hand. “I want to get good seats before the class fills up. We all have to sit next to each other, and I don’t want my back to the teacher! I hate turning around. Right, Lil?” She pulled her sister along, chattering away as they went.

Mike and Chester looked at each other as they walked along behind, their elbows touching. “You look hot,” Chester said, his voice low as he leaned across Mike to hold the door open for the both of them.

“Shhh,” Mike hissed playfully as he stepped inside. “Don’t make me blush in front of the girls.”

“They don’t care,” Chester said, his eyes searching for where Lila and Lily had disappeared to. “You should have heard them on the way over, talking about you. Wondering if you could paint.” Chester chuckled, and Mike felt the warmth of that sound in his toes. “I think Lily really wants to be better than you at something.” Before Mike could respond, he saw Lila waving them over to her selected spot. “Come on, Lila’s picked out our painting locations.”

“Dad! This is perfect!” Lila said as soon as they were close enough that she didn’t have to yell. Lily hung back, letting her sister take over bossy mode for once. “Ok, Dad, you’re here,” he said pointing to one stool, “and Lil, you’re next to Dad.” Lila looked at Mike, and pointed to Chester’s other side. “And you’re on the other side of Dad, Mr. Shmike.” She covered her hand with her mouth and giggled. “It’s so weird to not call you Mr. Shinoda!”

Mike smiled and sat down next to Chester. “Don’t worry about it,” he said lightly. “It’s all going to take a little time to get used to.” Lila nodded and sat down on Mike’s other side. A pristine white twenty-four by thirty-six canvas was on an easel in front of all of them, and that was it. Mike looked around, wondering how it all worked. “So, have you guys been here before?” he asked Lila, who was spinning on the stool next to him.

“We had our birthday here last year,” Lily spoke up from the other side of Chester. “Mom and Dad rented out the whole place for us.”

Mike’s eyes met Chester’s. He knew how expensive that must have been for him. “Wow, that sounds fun,” he offered. “What did you paint?”

“It was _Starry Night_ ,” Lila supplied, her twirling coming to a halt. “You know, Van Gogh?”

“I’ve heard of him,” Mike said, a bit of panic coming back as he tried to see the front of the classroom. “We’re not painting something like that tonight, are we?” he asked.

Lila stood up and looked at the two paintings at the front of the room. “It’s either that one there, with the fireflies in the jar, or that one on the other side, the field with the flowers.” She pointed at the fireflies. “I hope it’s that one.”

“It won’t be too hard,” Lily added slyly, as she bent over to look at Mike’s face. “They tell you how to do it, step by step,” she added, and Chester leaned over to plant a kiss to her forehead.

“That’s right, they do,” he agreed, running his hand over her long hair. Unlike Mike, he was completely relaxed and happy. His girls were with Mike, and Mike was at his side. In his mind, it was a perfect evening already.

“Come on, Mike, let’s go get our aprons,” Lila instructed. “Dad, you and Lily save our spots, and when we get back, you guys can go get your aprons. Okay?”

“You bet, Lila-bug.” Chester watched Mike dutifully get up and follow directions, Lila’s chatterbox voice never stopping as they walked to the back wall together. He glanced at Lily. “So, how is it, so far?” he dared to ask.

“Daaaad,” Lily complained, tossing her hair back. “We just sat down. I don’t know!”

“But it’s not weird, right?” Chester pressed, hoping Lily would answer before Mike sat back down.

“No, it’s not weird. He’s a lot cooler than he is at school,” Lily conceded, smiling at her father. “And Lila loves him already.” She looked over at Mike and Lila, coming back with their aprons already on. She giggled at the sight of her band director in a green apron with red apples all over it, and eyelet lace around the top and sides. “Jeez, Dad, let’s go find you one just like it.” She stood up just as Mike was sitting down. “Nice apron.” 

Chester was about to say something, but Mike beat him to the punch. “If I’d known I needed an apron, I’d have brought my red and black one from home.” 

Lily didn’t know what to say to that, so she just shrugged. Chester winked at Mike. “Nice,” he whispered. Mike was holding his own against his sassy daughter, and that was a relief. He selected an equally feminine and ridiculous apron and about the time he sat down again, the teacher was ready to start the class. 

“Well, here we go,” Mike mumbled under his breath, craning his neck to see what he was being asked to do.

They started with the background, something Mike felt reasonably confident with. They divided the canvas into quadrants, each corner a slightly different combination of black and blue and white to make a summer night sky. Every once in a while Chester’s elbow would nudge him lightly, and Mike would smile at the secret contact while Lila talked on and on about everything under the sun. 

Lily leaned over to look at all four canvases when the instructions paused and they were waiting for them to dry in order to move on. She saw Mike still dabbing at his canvas. “Mr. Shinoda, if you keep painting on it, it will never dry. And you can’t go on to the next step.”

“She’s right,” Chester said, his hand sliding behind Mike’s back and caressing his shoulder lightly. “Sometimes she knows what she’s talking about.”

“Dad!” Lily fussed, rolling her eyes. “I’m just trying to help!”

“He doesn’t need your advice,” Lila complained, leaning forward to see around Mike and Chester. “Mike is just fine.” 

“Okay, okay.” Mike interjected, putting his paintbrush down and waving his hand in the air. “Thanks, Lily, I’ll stop. And thanks for the vote of confidence, Lila.” He was tired already from trying to keep both of the twins happy, and he leaned back gladly into Chester’s welcome touch.

“You’re doing great,” Chester whispered, his lips brushing against Mike’s ear. “And not just with the painting.” Even with the twins arguing a little over Mike’s attention, it was going better than expected.

Mike reached over and squeezed Chester’s knee. He didn’t say anything, just enjoyed the closeness before his boyfriend moved away to pick up the next brush, ready to follow directions again.

The next set of steps put stars in the sky, then wispy green grass at the lower two quadrants. Mike frowned at each step, glancing first at Lila’s painting next him, then Chester’s on the other side. It was obvious his visual arts skills were somewhat lacking, and for a moment he wished he’d asked Jason for some help. _It doesn’t matter, Mike. You’re not here to be a great artist. You’re here to bond with the girls outside of school. Nobody cares if your painting is good. Good Mood Mike, Good Mood Mike,_ he chanted to himself. He sucked on his bottom lip in concentration, trying to make the shading better on his tall grasses. 

Eventually, they were all painting the outline of a glass jar, and twinkling fireflies inside and outside of the jar. The final strokes had been placed on every canvas but Mike’s, and he was struggling. His fireflies looked like blobs, and his glass jar was unrecognizable. He was still trying to fix it when Lila looked over at him and said, “Mike, I like it. You should stop before you mess it up.” 

He looked over at the sincere expression on Lila’s face, and he decided to listen. “You’re right. I’m always trying to make things perfect. It doesn’t have to be prefect, does it?”

“You’re like that in band, too,” Lila said, and Lily was quick to agree.

“Yes! And it’s annoying.” Lily crossed her arms and looked at Mike’s painting, then her own, with a satisfied smile. Hers was definitely better.

“Well, in band, it’s important to be precise, and to be as close to perfect as possible. We’re not improvising. And that’s why you’re such a star in theater, Lily. You get to be more creative. It’s so you,” Mike offered.

Chester smiled at Mike’s compliment. “He’s right, Lily. There are some disciplines where perfection is prized over creativity, and vice versa. You don’t want a creative brain surgeon, but you _do_ want a creative artist. Or dancer, or actor. _Actress_ ,” he corrected at the look on his daughter’s face. 

“You can be creative, Lily. I want to be _right_.” Lila smirked at her sister, mimicking her crossed arms.

“Now, that’s not what I said-” Mike started, but Lily interrupted.

“You’re such a suck up!” Lily stuck her tongue out at Lila. “Dad!” 

“Girls, we’ve talked about this before. You don’t have to be the same. And we’ll love you just the same. Fighting isn’t going to make you the favorite, you know.”

Everyone looked at Chester at the same time, and he actually felt his cheeks flush pink as he replayed back what he’d said - _we’ll love you just the same._ He cleared his throat and looked at Mike. “I mean, I…” he stopped, because the look in Mike’s eyes told him that he hadn’t misspoken. 

This wasn’t really the first time Mike was meeting the girls, even if it was the first time outside of school. He’d taught them for an entire year, seen every mood they had to offer, good days and bad days, and everything in between. Chester knew that if Mike didn’t love his girls they wouldn’t be standing in _Painting With a Twist_ right now, with silly frilly aprons on, talking about the future at all. Mike had known what his girls were all about before they had ever stepped foot in the building, and he still wanted to be with Chester. He put his career in jeopardy every time they met outside of school for the last several months. Chester knew there was no way Mike Shinoda would have risked everything if he didn’t love his girls, and the enormity of that realization hit him all at once.

“You’re right, Ches. _We._ ” Mike looked at Lily, then at Lila. “Your dad is right. You can be whoever you want to be, and we’re going love you just the same. Nothing you can do will change that.”

Lila uncrossed her arms and looked between Mike and her father, who was looking at her band director like he was some mythical creature, someone who wasn’t quite real that had stolen his breath away. “You mean it? You want to love us, too? Not just Dad?” There was hope behind her eyes, and Mike knew in that instant that he was very, very sure.

“I would have never started dating your dad if I didn’t already love you both,” Mike said. “Teaching you two was the best advantage ever. I didn’t have to take a chance.” He felt Chester’s arm go around his shoulder and pull him in close. “As long as you two want me around, I’m here.” He cleared his throat, a little embarrassed at the speech he hadn’t expected to give.

Lily and Lila looked at each other, and Lily’s arms dropped to her sides. “Daddy?” she asked, her voice suddenly years younger as she looked at Chester. “I want you to be happy,” she said, her dark eyes large as she reached for Lila’s hand. 

“Me, too,” Lila said, squeezing her sister tight. “We should go get cupcakes at _Sprinkles_ now that the painting is over. I’m not ready to go home yet. Please, Dad?” Both girls nodded, turning huge puppy dog eyes on the men in front of them.

Chester blinked back the tears that had formed when Mike was telling his twins that he loved them and shook his head. “Mike, we’re so screwed if they’re gonna team up on us like that, you know it?” He chuckled a little under his breath as Mike laughed too.

“Looks like we’re getting cupcakes, ladies,” Mike agreed, shaking his head as they cheered together. “Let’s get these paintings and get out of here.” 

***  
TBC


	12. Shinoda Sunday Dinner

It was Friday night, the first Friday night since school let out that Chester didn’t have the girls. The way Mike had looked forward to it all week, it might as well have been the first Friday ever, since the Earth had been created. Over the course of the week between the painting date and this First Friday, he and Chester had so many conversations. Some were prudent adult conversations - sharing results of their recent STD testing, whether they wanted to use condoms, lube preferences - and others were silly, teenage cooing and wooing. Laughing over the way Chester had to convince Talinda to take Lucy for the weekend. Discussing whether Chester should even bother packing a bag to stay the weekend at Mike’s, since they planned to be naked the entire time. Sharing thoughts they’d had about each other since that parent-teacher conference, so many months ago. 

Now they were together, finally, dinner plans having been abandoned before Chester had even dropped the girls and the Pomeranian off at Talinda’s. All it took was a few quick texts for Mike to say, no, he wasn’t really hungry, and for Chester to tell Mike he wasn’t hungry for food. Their well-thought out plan to meet for dinner first so they didn’t waste any time changed to meeting at Mike’s house, and neither of them observed the speed limit as they drove to each other. 

Chester’s red Mustang was already in Mike’s driveway when he pulled in, uncharacteristically leaving his car out in the open instead of putting it in the garage. His boyfriend was out of the car and opening his door before Mike could even grab his phone and wallet from the console. 

“Sorry I’m late,” Mike said breathlessly, pulling himself up out of the car and stuffing his phone into his front pocket. 

“No apologies,” Chester answered, shutting the door and pulling Mike into a kiss that melted his entire body, right there in the driveway between their cars. “Enough talking about it, get me inside before I lay you across the hood of this car in front of your neighbors.” 

They scrambled up the sidewalk together, Mike nearly dropping his keys in his haste to get the door open. Chester’s hands were all over him from behind, touching up under his shirt as he pulled Mike’s hips close to him. “I’ve been wanting you from the moment I saw you,” Chester nearly growled as they stumbled into the foyer of the townhome. 

Mike didn’t bother to turn on the light. This was it. No holding back now. They’d crossed everything off their list of things stopping them from climbing into bed together. They were both absolutely sure that this relationship was what they wanted. Mike turned under Chester’s greedy hands and caught his boyfriend’s lips, their kiss hot and demanding with all the restraint stripped away.

There was a muffled thump as Chester dropped his bag and backed Mike up against the wall, pressing his hips forward roughly, his already present erection grinding into Mike and causing the lowest, most beautiful moan he’d ever heard. “Yesss,” he whispered, reaching up to feel Mike’s jawline, pecking kiss after kiss to the underside. “No more waiting, Mikey.” 

This time, Mike did drop his keys, along with his wallet, so he could shove his hands deep in the back pockets of Chester’s dark jeans. “Let’s go upstairs,” Mike gasped, his head hitting the wall behind them as he leaned back to give Chester more room. He pulled Chester up against him and both men groaned.

“Shoes off,” Chester reminded Mike, his words hot in Mike’s ear. 

They both grumbled in unison as they let go of each other and started grappling with their shoes in the dark. “Okay, mine are off,” Mike said urgently, feeling for Chester in front of him. His hands connected with the top of Chester’s head, his fingers slipping through the brown curls as he petted over them.

Chester paused, knowing his face was right at Mike’s crotch. _Upstairs. We’re going upstairs. We can’t do this in the foyer, don’t press your face to his cock. Don’t do it._ He leaned forward, barely bumping Mike’s crotch with his nose.

“Come onnn,” Mike hissed, pulling at Chester’s hair and listening to the quiet chuckles from below. “You’re being a tease.”

“No, I’m not going to tease you tonight,” Chester said as he felt his way back up Mike’s body. “Lead the way.” He felt Mike grab his hand and pull him in the darkness through the living room and toward the stairs.

They hurried up the steps, their socked feet quiet on the carpet, right to the master bedroom. The moment they were inside, Chester’s hands were on Mike again, pulling at the hem of his shirt as they backed toward the bed.

A faint meow hit Mike’s ear and he felt Lexie scurry past his feet. “Wait, wait,” he whispered. “Let me put Lex out and shut the door.” He broke out of Chester’s grasp and felt for the lamp by the bed, turning on the dim light so he could find the cat. 

Lexie was in the middle of the bedroom floor, and Mike could swear she was glaring at him as he scooped her up and deposited her outside the door, firmly closing it and then locking it to her dismay. She yowled a few times from the hallway, and Mike grinned as he made his way back over to Chester, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed. “Don’t worry. She’ll give up and find something else to do,” Mike said as he stopped between Chester’s knees and looked down at him.

A feeling of nervousness crashed over him suddenly, despite their well thought out plans for how the first time between them would unfold. “Ches,” he whispered, his hand going out to stroke over Chester’s cheek. “This is really happening.” 

“It really is,” Chester husked back, his hands finding Mike’s hips as they looked at each other. The urgency from just moments earlier had cooled a little. “You nervous?” Chester asked, caressing Mike’s sides with his thumbs.

“A little,” Mike answered honestly. “It’s like we’ve had months of foreplay and now it’s like - I hope I live up to the hype.” He smiled and laughed lightly, trying not to let on how desperately he hoped that Chester wouldn’t be disappointed with him. He’d spent all week talking himself up and not letting the cruel things that had been said between him and Brad get in the way of this new relationship. Brad was the past. Chester was the present, and hopefully the future. That was all that mattered.

Chester leaned forward and nuzzled his nose into Mike’s stomach. _He’s perfect. And he doesn’t even know it._ “We’re both in this together,” he said, his face muffled by Mike’s shirt. “Let’s see what feels right tonight, okay? If we don’t get to everything on the list, we have all weekend.” He slid his hands up under the hem of Mike’s shirt and lifted a few inches so he could taste the skin across Mike’s belly. Chester sucked in a deep breath of the scent he knew as Mike Shinoda before he kissed a few fluttery kisses to his side, reveling in the chuckle he heard from above.

“That tickles,” Mike laughed softly, his hands touching all over Chester’s hair and his neck, his cheeks and his shoulders. 

“Come down here then.” 

Mike opened his eyes to see Chester scooting back on the bed, the dark crimson blanket they’d chosen together under his hands. He stood frozen for a moment next to the bed, admiring Chester’s pale skin against the blanket, before he took a deep breath and joined him. 

Their hands found each other immediately and all the teasing and talking stopped as kiss after kiss happened. Mike’s shirt was the first to go, tossed haphazardly to the floor so Chester could lay propped on his elbow next to Mike, running a hand over Mike’s bare skin.

“You’re hot,” Chester said with a grin, his hand stroking Mike’s body and lightly grazing over each dark nipple as he drank in the skin that was a few shades darker than his own. _Like a latte,_ Chester decided in his head. _I could just drink him._

Mike just shook his head on the blanket. “You’re ridiculous,” he countered just before Chester’s head dropped to his neck and ran a long line of kisses down his collarbone, then down further to swipe his tongue over one of Mike’s nipples. There was a little gasp, and Mike’s hands went right to Chester’s shirt. “I want to see you,” he husked, tugging at the bottom and watching as Chester reached back and pulled the shirt off over his head by the collar.

It was Mike’s turn to stare, and he sat up, his hands going out immediately to touch over all the tattoos that had been covered the whole time they’d known each other. There were dragons, koi fish, a banner with the girls initials on it. Mike dragged his fingertips over each tattoo, memorizing the lines and the colors one by one. He looked up, and Chester’s eyes were closed as Mike touched him. “They’re beautiful,” Mike whispered, mesmerized. 

Just the feel of Mike’s hands was creating tingling sensations under Chester’s skin. He opened his eyes enough to see Mike, to reach out for him and fuse their lips together as he lowered him to the blanket. He was dying to get Mike naked as their tongues played hide and seek with each other. Mike was sucking on his bottom lip as Chester got his hand between them, and Mike met him there, both of them working each other’s jeans open and giggling into each other’s mouths as hands got in the way and teeth knocked together. 

Somehow they managed to get down to underwear, and Mike closed his eyes as they both turned on their sides to face each other. The front of his boxer briefs were already wet, his cock leaking precum like crazy in anticipation of what was to come. Their legs laced together and Chester’s hand found Mike’s ass, pulling their lower halves together with just those two thin scraps of fabric between them. “Fuck, Mike,” he hissed, attacking his boyfriend’s lips again.

Mike couldn’t help but buck his hips forward a few times, the friction insanely delicious between their covered cocks. “I told you, I don’t know how long I’ll last tonight,” Mike whispered when their kiss broke, his cheeks blushing. It had been more than a year since he’d last had sex, and his body was primed for it. The fact he’d been able to wait as long as he had while dating Chester was nothing short of a miracle. 

“I don’t care about that. I want to taste you.” Chester watched Mike shiver at his words and dragged his fingers down the center of Mike’s torso. He stopped at the waistband of his boxer briefs, waiting for Mike to give him approval to strip them away, and then they were gone, on the floor with everything else, and his hand was on Mike’s cock. His thoughts rushed quickly in a jumbled mess of excitement and desire. _He’s so wet I bet he tastes amazing I need him on his back now I want him God do I want him!_

Mike heard his own whimpers and felt his skin flush in embarrassment as Chester slowly coaxed him onto his back, his hand never stopping the slow, deliberate strokes. He felt his knees fall to the sides as Chester hovered over him and Mike kept his eyes closed, his heart racing.

“Mike,” Chester whispered, “open your eyes. Look at me. Don’t shut me out.” He ran his free hand down Mike’s thigh and felt a thrill through his stomach as Mike’s dark eyes opened and found him. His expression was naked with need and trust, and Chester wasn’t going to take that lightly. “Be in the moment with me.”

Mike raised his hand to stroke down Chester’s clean shaven face softly. “Okay. I’m with you,” he whispered, and watched as Chester bent over him and licked a gentle swipe over the head of his cock. His body jerked at the sensation but that didn’t break Chester’s concentration. Mike caressed over the top of Chester’s curls as attention was lavished on him, licks and gentle suckles alternating while Chester’s free hand played over Mike’s thigh. As hard as he tried, Mike’s eyes fluttered between open and closed, and then he was completely gone as Chester’s mouth took him in, all heat and wetness in one move. 

Chester felt Mike’s hand fall to the bed as he savored each second of having Mike in this mouth. He used his tongue to press the vein along the underside of Mike’s dick, then to lap at his slit while he sucked at the head. His own eyes squeezed shut as he tasted Mike, and tried to figure out what he liked. There seemed to be a positive reaction to Chester pulling his lips tightly around the ridge of Mike’s mushroom head and sucking, so he made sure to do that at the end of each slide up and down. He could feel the tremble in Mike’s legs and he wanted to bring him to orgasm this way, but they had talked about other things. Actually having sex. Chester didn’t know if Mike still wanted that, or if he should keep going.

With one last lingering suck to Mike’s cock, Chester let him go, a smile touching his saliva and precum smeared lips at the whimper from above. “Mike,” he whispered, running his hand up over Mike’s bare stomach, enjoying the flush of Mike’s skin. “You taste fucking delicious.” His insides twisted in anticipation as Mike’s eyes cracked open and locked onto him. 

“Kiss me,” Mike answered, his body tense with arousal. He frowned as he watched Chester slide off the bed, until he realized it was only to get rid of his own underwear before he climbed back on, sliding between Mike’s legs like he’d been there a million times. A snap of static electricity sparked between them, and they both grinned at each other. “Fuckin’ blanket,” Mike whispered as Chester lowered his naked body to Mike’s, their cocks touching uncovered for the first time.

“You should see yourself against this blanket,” Chester murmured before he took Mike’s lips again, their hips shifting together as their fluids mingled and smeared between them. He buried both his hands in Mike’s hair as the kisses went deeper, as Mike’s hands came around to cup his ass cheeks and pull them together tightly. Chester’s teeth pulled on Mike’s bottom lip before he raised his head to look Mike in the eyes. “Do you want me?” he panted. He could feel Mike’s breaths on his lips and he wanted to keep going. 

“God, yes,” Mike said, his voice ragged and needy. “I want more.” He lifted his hips into Chester again and they both gasped. “Like this. There’s lube in the drawer.” He tilted his chin up and looked over his shoulder toward the nightstand.

Chester kissed Mike’s lifted chin. “Then hold on. This is going to suck.” He lifted himself from Mike, both of them groaning at the loss of contact, to retrieve the bottle. He was back at Mike’s side in seconds, bottle in hand, kissing the side of his face. _Here we go. In a few minutes I’ll be inside him. God, he’s beautiful._

They went slow, one finger, then two, Chester’s eyes on Mike’s face the whole time as he probed and stretched, scissored and kissed away the discomfort. He listened to Mike’s breathing, the small helpless sounds he made as Chester went deeper, as he added another finger, his cock smearing precum along Mike’s thigh as he watched Mike slowly coming undone in front of him. He waited for that desperate, “ _now, Chester_ ” his heart fluttering anxiously as he nodded, carefully pulling his fingers free and then covering his dick with lube, pushing Mike’s leg up and out to center himself and join them together. 

Their eyes met and Mike nodded, taking a deep breath as Chester pushed forward, his wet tip entering Mike’s relaxed and stretched body more easily than either of them expected. Neither of them looked away as Mike breathed through the burn, then nodded his head again. Chester moved his hips forward and Mike gasped, and Chester froze, waiting again, his cock half buried. Two more pushes, two more pauses, and then Chester was fully inside, a connection that had been waiting five months to be made finally complete.

Mike raised his hand to touch Chester’s face again, both of them breathing heavily. He was hot all over and ready to be fucked, ready for the bliss that would come with Chester getting into a good rhythm, maybe even hitting his prostate. It was hard to hold back his expectations for their first time, but everything so far was better than he’d hoped for. “It’s good, I’m good,” he whispered, and Chester nodded. 

Chester looked at Mike’s messy hair, his swollen lips and dark eyes, and breathed, “god, me too.” He pulled out a little and pushed back in, letting the lube coat Mike’s insides, watching as Mike’s eyes closed, and he dropped his head and allowed himself to do the same as he set about fucking Mike’s Shinoda’s brains out. 

They weren’t quiet. There was a lot of whispered, _yes, there,_ and _more, Ches_ , a few louder requests for _harder_ , and lots of moans between hot kisses fueled by greedy hands. As they really got going Mike started to stroke himself in rhythm with Chester’s thrusts but his hand was pulled away, replaced for a few pumps by Chester’s until his coordination failed. Their laughs came between pants and moans as Mike steadied Chester with his hands before he husked, “you better let me do that,” and snaked his hand back between their bodies. 

His moment of climax came too quickly, just as he’d predicted it would. Chester watched in rapt attention as the veins in Mike’s neck strained, as his mouth dropped open in a silent cry and cum shot between them, and Chester felt the tremors, the squeezing of Mike’s inner walls around his cock as he kept the pace. “Fuck, you’re incredible,” Chester breathed as Mike came down, as his hand fell to his side and he opened his unfocused eyes. They were black, his pupils blown huge and round with endorphins and oxytocin after what looked and felt like an amazing orgasm. Chester leaned down and pressed kisses all along Mike’s sweaty forehead, his fingers digging into the crimson blanket under Mike’s body as he let go of his restraint. Mike had gotten his, now it was time for Chester to do the same. 

The sensation of Chester coming, of his seed spilling into Mike’s body, was a little overwhelming for them both. Chester’s arms shook as he held his upper body off Mike’s for leverage, and his hips moved uncontrollably as Mike kissed up under his chin and down his neck, one hand on his shoulder. Each push into Mike brought a shudder to Chester’s body, an emptying of his cum until he was spent, and even then he continued to move inside him, feeling the new warmth and slickness until his erection softened and he couldn’t move anymore. 

“Would you be hurt if I suggested separate showers?” Mike murmured in Chester’s ear when it was all over, when he lay blinking up at the ceiling and stroking the sweat from Chester’s back. He didn’t want to move, but he knew what a mess things would be shortly with no condoms to contain Chester’s release. He’d already carefully separated their bodies before he collapsed onto Mike, and as they let their pulses and breathing calm, Mike was almost afraid Chester had fallen asleep on him. “Ches?”

“You’re first,” Chester mumbled, snuggling his sweaty head under Mike’s chin. “You got the messy side of things, Mikey.” His voice was laced with tenderness, and Mike smiled.

“You sound sleepy,” he teased softly, moving his hand to thread through Chester’s damp curls. “You can go first. You did all the work.” 

“You’re right. You can do all the work tomorrow. I expect breakfast in bed and you on top, you got that?” Chester opened his eyes to find Mike’s hand, and he slid their palms together. “I don’t mean it,” he whispered. “I’ll do all the work for us, if that’s what you wanted.”

Mike closed his eyes, a dreamy smile covering his whole face as he laughed once, a short giggle cut off by Chester’s weight on his ribcage. “Be careful what you promise me after sex, I don’t forget anything.”

Chester grinned, his mouth right at Mike’s collarbone. He kissed his boyfriend there gently, then slid off him and to the side. “Go on, gorgeous. I fully agree on separate showers. Gotta keep some mystery, you know?” 

_Thank goodness,_ Mike thought as he kissed Chester’s cheek and stood up from the bed gingerly. First times were awkward enough without the messy aftermath being shown. “I won’t be long. I have my shower routine down to a science.”

“I don’t doubt that at all,” Chester said as Mike disappeared into the bathroom, closing the double doors behind him. 

Mike started the water, then took care of his business at the toilet. It was odd to be in the bathroom without Lexie underfoot, and he stood at the vanity, looking at himself in the mirror. He looked positively wrecked - love marks on his neck and his hair disheveled, his lips swollen and his cheeks flushed still - and a wicked grin spread over his face. _It’s only Friday night. We’ve got thirty-six more hours of this._

When he stepped out of the bathroom, a towel around his waist, he was surprised to see the bedroom door open. Chester was in his underwear, folding away the soiled red blanket, and Lexie was between the pillows already, her head upside down and tucked into her front paws. Mike paused, looking first at the cat, then at Chester.

“She was meowing,” Chester said with a shrug. “I assumed it was because she was ready to go to sleep.

“You don’t mind?” Mike asked as Chester put the blanket on the floor and walked around the bed. 

“I’m not going to upset your whole routine in one night, Mike,” Chester answered, leaning over to kiss Mike’s lips without touching his clean body. “It’s already past your bedtime. I’ve gotta ease you in, you know?” He left the door open as he sauntered into the bathroom. “Alright if I use your shampoo?” he called, grabbing the towel Mike had left rolled up on the vanity for him. 

“Use anything you want!” Mike called back, his whole body alight with happiness and worn out from sex. He glanced back at the bathroom, wondering if Chester was _really_ going to come to bed naked, uncertainty flooding over him as he tried to decide whether to put on underwear or not. _Fuck it_ , he decided, pulling back his blanket and sliding under the sheets, disrupting Lexie as he pulled his pillow close.

“Settle down,” he whispered to the cat, “or I’ll kick you out again.” Lexie wiggled her nose at Mike’s minty clean breath and snuggled back down, her eyes shutting lazily as she and Mike waited for Chester to come to bed.

Mike didn’t realize he’d drifted off until he felt the side of the bed dip, and then Chester was beside him, naked and warm as he scooted in close. “How’re you feeling?” he asked cautiously. The post-sex high had faded, and even though Chester felt good about how things had gone, he knew he wouldn’t sleep until he was certain Mike felt the same way.

“Comfortable. Sleepy. And happy,” Mike answered, smushing his face into his pillow. “I’m so glad you can stay the night.”

Chester felt his whole body relax in the darkness, Mike’s clean body tucked up next to his. “Me, too.” He waited a second before he brushed his lips over the back of Mike’s neck. “I want you to know, I was right.”

Mike’s eyes popped open, but all he could see was darkness. Chester had turned off the lamp before he came to bed. “Right? About what?” Mike asked, a flip of giddiness in his voice that he couldn’t contain.

“When I decided to go for it. I was right that you’d say yes. I knew you’d resist, rules and all that, but I could see in your eyes that you’d say yes. And I was right.” He nuzzled his face into Mike’s hair and sighed.

“I would have never done it myself,” Mike admitted. “I’m so glad you asked.” He lifted Chester’s hand from his stomach and kissed it in the dark. “I’m so glad you were right.”

****

Saturday slipped by in a haze of broken routine. There _was_ breakfast in bed - donuts from the shop around the corner Chester had snuck off to while Mike slept past his alarm. There was another blow job - this time with Mike on his knees and Chester feeling as though he’d died and gone to Heaven. There was pizza, also in bed, as Mike’s car stayed in the driveway next to Chester’s and his phone stayed in the pocket of his jeans instead of being charged. Somehow Mike remembered to feed the cat - probably because Lexie set up another fuss at being locked out of the master bedroom, where there was a crimson red blanket on the floor, clothes strewn about, and another romp in bed before they collapsed next to each other on rumpled sheets, thoroughly fucked out. Lexie was not impressed that her owner spent all of Saturday in bed with a man who she still wasn’t sure she liked, though she did let Chester scratch the favorite place under her chin.

Sunday morning was a load of laundry and coffee on the patio while Mike’s banana bread baked in the oven. By noon they were laying on the couch, talking about the next weekend they could spend together, and at four-thirty Chester was trading his gauges for plugs and putting on a long sleeved shirt to go meet Mike’s parents, despite Mike encouraging his lover to be himself. 

For the first time, Chester looked a little nervous about meeting Mike’s parents. Mike glanced at him in the master bathroom mirror as he stood at his sink, styling his hair. He reached over and ran a hand down Chester’s arm, his fingers fiddling with the cuff of the crimson red shirt. “I love this color,” Mike commented, lifting his eyebrows suggestively.

“I bought this shirt after we bought your blanket,” Chester said, turning to pull Mike into him by the belt loops. “I think this color does you far more justice.” He maneuvered Mike around so that his ass was resting against the vanity and pressed his hips into Mike’s. “God, Mike, I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want you. Are you sure we have to go to the SSD? We can’t put it off another week?” He leaned forward and kissed one of the faint purplish marks he’d accidentally left on Mike’s neck last night.

“Skipping Sunday dinner is possibly the worst thing we could do,” Mike breathed, his heart already beating fast as Chester kissed him. “Even with that hickey on my neck that you’re kissing, we have to go. My mom can hardly stand it any longer.” He felt Chester’s smile on his skin before he pulled away.

“Talking about your mom is a good way to kill a hard on,” Chester teased, stepping back and adjusting his shirt again. “But okay. I’m ready. Bring me the Shinodas. We’re taking Christine.”

“Be ready for my brother to be all over that car,” Mike said with an eyeroll. He flipped off the bathroom light and followed Chester out. “He’s so repressed. He wants to be cool and he drives a minivan.”

“Ah, yes, the cool Mr. Shinoda.” Chester bounced down the stairs and turned to extend his hand to Mike. “I can’t wait. Tell me again, the wife and kids? I swear I was listening.”

Mike slid his hand into Chester’s and pulled him close for another kiss. “My sister-in-law is Jacqueline, but only Mom calls her that. Jay calls her Jack. The girls are Scarlet and Juliet. In that order.”

“Margaret Mitchell and Shakespeare. What a combination.” Chester plucked his keys off the hook in the laundry room where Mike had hung them that morning in his bid to bring order to his house after the sex tornado went through. 

“I think it was more like Jason named Scarlet after paint, and Jack picked a “J” name to fit with her and Jay. But Margaret Mitchell and Shakespeare sounds like they actually had a plan. Let’s go with that.” Mike shooed Chester out the front door and locked up. “Damn, I forgot I left my car out here,” he commented as they got into the red Mustang.

“That was two days ago. You should probably check your voicemails, too. I haven’t seen you touch your phone since I got here.” Chester hummed to himself and navigated out of the neighborhood as Mike swiped a little on his phone. 

“Nothing important,” Mike said. “Turn left at the light. Bourdie texted, just to let me know he’s alive.” He reached over and took Chester’s hand. “I know I’ve already told you, but my mom will be the one who won’t stop talking, and you’ll forget my dad is there. The girls are probably going to climb all over you, and Jay will ask to drive your car. You can say no. Jack is cool, she probably won’t say much. The girls keep her pretty exhausted. Turn right.”

Chester glanced sideways at Mike. “I’ll be fine. You forget I talk to hysterical people every day and I have two teenage girls. This should be easy comparatively.” The truth was, he _was_ a little nervous, but it was clear Mike was, too, and Chester wanted to try to put him at ease. 

“I know, I know. It’s just… well, you’re only the second person I’ve ever brought home.” Mike looked down at his gray sweater and picked at some invisible lint. He’d gone all weekend without thinking about Brad. He wasn’t going to let him ruin it now. 

“We’ve talked about that, too, Mikey, and it’s going to be fine. You’re working yourself up and I promise you, I can handle it.” 

Mike looked out the windshield. “Turn right again. Then the second left.”

In three more minutes, Chester was carefully pulling Christine into the circle drive of Mike’s parents’ house. It was was impressive place, to be sure, and the nervous energy in Chester’s body shot up a few notches. “I figured they had a nice place, but damn, Mike. You come from a little bit of money, don’t you?”

“A little,” Mike agreed, sighing. “But don’t let it fool you. They’re just regular people with regular issues, just like everyone else. And don’t forget your shoes,” Mike instructed.

Chester scoffed as he got out of the car. “If I can remember to take my shoes off when all I want to do is bang you against your front door, I’m not going to forget here.”

Mike laughed before he shushed Chester. “You’re a mess.” He grabbed his boyfriend’s hand and let the way to the front, past Jason’s minivan, past the elaborate landscaping and the small fountain his mother adored. “Okay, here we go.” 

Mike opened the front door and stepped in, pulling Chester along with him. The rich smell of roasted chicken hit Chester’s nose immediately. “So that’s where you leaned to cook,” he mused thoughtfully as he sniffed, his stomach rumbling in anticipation. “Damn if I’m not the luckiest guy alive.”

“I’m the lucky one,” Mike whispered as he and Chester left their shoes at the front door. “Because here we go. Welcome to the family, Ches.” He raised his voice and called, “Mom! I’m here!” 

_Welcome to the family._ Chester realized right then that meeting Mike’s parents held the same level of importance in Mike’s eyes as meeting his girls had in his. A warmth flooded over him when Mike’s fingers laced into his and they started toward the kitchen. Chester looked around at the artwork on the walls and the rugs covering the hardwood floors as Mike lead him down the hallway and closer to the food. Everything screamed color - something Mike’s house was devoid of - and class - which Mike had plenty of - and then Donna Shinoda poked her head out of the kitchen. Chester almost laughed at the white and yellow checkered apron she was wearing that reminded him of Mike’s red and black one, except with lace around the decorative pocket. Her dark graying hair was pulled up in a bun, and she had a dish cloth in her hand, folded the same way Mike folded his.

“Michael! Come here!” She stepped into the hall and hugged her first born close before she took a step back, her eyes shining. “You are _glowing_ , son! That’s how I like to see you, so happy!” 

Chester stood back as Donna’s eyes shifted to him, and before he could say anything or offer his hand, Mike’s mother had swept him into a hug. “And finally we meet Chester! I’m so happy you could join us for dinner! Can I get you anything? Tea? Lemonade? Well, I made lemonade for the girls, but you can have some. Or wine? We’re having chicken, so that really calls for a white, but I’ve got a lovely red I can open if you prefer. Come on into the kitchen, Chester, and tell me all about your weekend. Michael has told us so much about you.”

Mike’s eyes connected with Chester’s while he politely declined a drink, and he laughed out loud at the bewildered look on his boyfriend’s face as they followed his mother into the kitchen, trying to answer Donna’s rapid fire questions. Jason was sitting at the bar with Juliet on his lap, grinning a mile wide. “Yeah, Mike, why don’t you guys tell us _all about_ your weekend?” he teased, looking at the horrified look on his brother’s face. “Tsk. You really need to stop letting the cat sleep with you, look at your neck.”

“Michael, you know you shouldn’t sleep with animals,” Donna chastised without even looking at Mike, her head in the refrigerator. Mike rolled his eyes and then stuck his tongue out at Jason, who covered Juliet’s eyes and flashed him the finger with a grin. 

“Mom, Lexie’s fine. Jay’s just giving me shit about having a hickey.” Mike wiggled his eyebrows at Jason, having bested him at the game. Chester stood in the middle of the kitchen, unsure what he was supposed to say, and Mike wrapped his arm around his boyfriend’s back. “Nice try,” he mouthed to Jason before he kissed Chester’s cheek.

“Oh, well… don’t let your father see that,” Donna said in a fluster, setting the butter and cream on the counter. “You boys need to get out of the kitchen now while I mash these potatoes, and then we’ll be ready to eat. Jason, did you set the table?”

“Mom, it’s Mike’s turn. I’ve got Juliet,” Jason whined, sounding every bit like the younger sibling Mike remembered growing up. All it took was him bringing someone home and Jason was acting like he was fourteen again.

“Jason, Mike has company this week. Everything is already in the dining room. Take Juliet with you, she can set out the spoons. Or give her to Jacqueline.” Donna dismissed her younger son and turned back to her stove. “Go on, now. This will be ready in five minutes.”

Mike watched Jason leave with his two year old in his arms and took the opportunity to guide Chester out into the living room while his mother’s back was turned. “You okay?” he whispered, leaning close to Chester’s ear. “She can be a lot at once.”

“I’ve got this.” Chester smiled, taking each subsequent introduction with ease. He shook Muto’s hand, kissed Jack’s cheek, and knelt to the floor to meet Scarlet and Juliet. He offered to carry dishes to the table for Donna, and pulled Mike’s chair out, to her delight. He knew which fork to use when, and kept up lively conversation with everyone while they enjoyed dinner, and Mike couldn’t have been happier. His anxiety over his close-knit family being too much for someone new had subsided before he’d even cleaned his plate. 

While Mike and Jason cleared the dishes Chester complimented the food and noted how Mike’s mother’s cheeks flushed the same shade of pink as Mike’s did when he was embarrassed. Before dessert was brought out to the linen covered dining table, Chester finished another insurance story that had Jason laughing, and rounded out tales of his job, his car, and his twins. He was the star of the evening, and Mike couldn’t help but smile proudly at him through coffee and dessert. Mike’s dad was characteristically quiet, mostly observing unless he was speaking Japanese to the little girls, but Mike caught him looking at Chester several times with approval, and that was all Mike needed from him. 

On their way out the door, Chester promised to bring Lily and Lila soon, and Mike could tell his mother was about to burst from the excitement of it all. _She probably won’t even wait until we’re home to call me. I can tell she’d got a million questions, and tons of things to say. She’s going to have to wait until he leaves._ Mike kissed his mother on the cheek and hugged his nieces, trying to make a clean exit, but Jason followed them out to see Christine, trying to convince Chester to let him take it for a ride.

“We’ll do it another day, Jason,” Mike insisted, glancing at his Apple watch. Time was precious now, on a Sunday night. Chester still had to drop Mike off at home, then make it back to his house before eight when Talinda brought the girls back to him. “We need to go. Mom talked forever.” 

Chester nodded, his face apologetic. “If we had more time, I’d let you drive it. But I need to be home before the girls.” He opened the passenger door for Mike, and Jason stuck his head right in to look around.

“Man, I’m jealous,” he said, looking over the dash. “Maybe when my girls are older I can find me one like this. It’s so clean. It’s like Mike’s car, to the extreme.” He poked Mike in the side, getting him to wait another minute as Mike was trying to move Jason out of the way so he could get in the car. 

“Don’t worry, I’ve got a dad car full of girly mess, too,” Chester mentioned as he walked around to the driver’s door. “Enjoy the stale fries and glitter and socks in your car, Jay, it will be over before you know it.” 

Jason backed out of the car and looked at Mike. They shared a quick smile before he lowered his voice and tapped his brother twice on the arm with his fist. “He’s right. His girls are already in the seventh grade. You make a point to enjoy it too, Mike.” 

“Thanks, Jay.” He thought about those words all the way home, and suddenly realized it didn’t scare him anymore. The thought of being around to see Chester’s twins grow up, and to be involved however they would let him was something he was looking forward to. It was true they were older. It wouldn’t be like babies needing feedings, or diapers changed, but the idea of having children to disrupt his life, to spin him into some sort of chaos, was something he could see himself doing… as long as Chester was there. 

It was seven twenty-seven when Chester pulled into Mike’s driveway. Both men had fallen silent on the short drive home, thinking over the weekend and the imminent parting of ways. Mike was the one to bravely speak first, turning in his seat to look at Chester as he said, “this has been an amazing weekend. Thanks for coming to meet my family. I know they can be a lot to take.”

Chester took Mike’s hand and kissed it gently. “You survived Lily all year. Meeting your mom is nothing compared to that. I wonder which one of them will run out of words first when they meet.” They both laughed softly, and Mike shook his head.

“The girls are great, Ches. And this,” he pointed between them, “is so, so good. I hope… I hope we can have another weekend like this soon.”

“Absolutely.” Chester squeezed Mike’s hand, his smile fading as he glanced at the time. “You know I have to go-”

“I know-”

“But I’m walking you to the door.” Chester raised his eyebrow as Mike started to interrupt again. “Shh. I’m not letting my boyfriend walk to the door alone at night. I’m positive someone is just waiting to steal your fine ass from me.”

“Nobody is stealing me,” Mike laughed, waiting for Chester to get out of the car and come around to open his door. They walked hand in hand to the front door, and just as Mike stopped, Chester reached to pull Mike into his arms.

“I’ve been wanting to ask you… what do you think about staying at my place the next weekend the girls are at Tal’s?” He saw the look of confusion on Mike’s face and rushed to say, “we’ll see you between now and then, but no overnights with the girls there. Not until we, you know…”

Mike smiled as Chester fumbled with what to say. He patted Chester’s arm with his free hand and teased boldly, “no spending the night until you put a ring on it, got it.“ 

“God Mike, you’re a like mind reader.” Chester grinned at him for a second, then pulled Mike a little bit closer. “You think you can survive in the chaos of my crazy house? I’m telling you, there’s stuff everywhere. The dog leaves toys out, and you don’t know how many hairbrushes and bows and elastic thingies my girls can leave lying around. And the bracelets. And shoes! God, Mike, the shoes, they’re everywhere, and I _like_ shoes but they take it to a whole new extre-”

Mike cut him off, his kiss silencing Chester’s mini-rant about the state of his house and his life, and how utterly different it was than Mike’s. He closed the remaining space between them, his fingers going up into Chester’s brown curls as he confidently held him still and kissed him until they were both breathless. “I’m sure,” he said, resting his forehead against Chester’s, everything in his body happily looking forward to a future with the man in front of him. “I’m absolutely, without a doubt, one hundred percent ready for you to continue to make me fall in love with the chaos. I don’t want it any other way.” 

****  
 _the end… I think…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I MIGHT be convinced to write a sequel. I don’t know. I really had this planned (for once, actually planned out) to be a short (for me) story, but I’m kinda in love with this Mike and Chester, too. I’ll say I’m thinking about it. You might have to convince me. Not sure what direction I’d go with it, so we’ll see.


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